Saskatoon’s new mayor and council will be asked to consider a higher property tax increase of 5.8 per cent next week, which should offer insight.
With six rookie councillors, Saskatoon’s new government brings the most change to the council chamber in 30 years.
While it might seem the stuff of fantasy today, that freshman council subsequently delivered a zero per cent property tax increase for 1995, which marked the first time that had happened since 1979 — a rare feat that has not been repeated since.
Back then, the city’s share of the property tax bill amounted to $646.25 for a bungalow with an average assessed value of $12,500. (A revision of property assessments was looming.)
Keeping the tax increase to zero sure sounds nice, but it came at a cost, notably increases in transit fares and admission fees for outdoor pools. A late attempt by councillor Kate Waygood to raise taxes by one per cent to combat child prostitution was rejected by a 6-5 vote.
The other returning incumbents — Troy Davies, Randy Donauer and Bev Dubois — voted against the budget, along with Hill. And Jeffries’s support seemed surprising, since he voted for many defeated measures that aimed to cut the budget and reduce the tax increase.
Now the city administration is asking for approval of a revised budget with an even higher property tax hike of 5.8 per cent. So the priorities of this mostly new council should become clear next week.
Will the new councillors seek to further reduce the tax hit? Or will they support the administration’s recommended increase?
City hall is anticipating more revenue from a number of sources, including higher than expected tax revenue due to growth ($2.2 million), more money from investments ($2 million) and higher provincial sales tax revenue sharing ($550,800).
Those increases are offset by lower than expected revenues from parking and tickets, more spending on transit safety measures and more money needed for pothole and road repair due to “wildly fluctuating weather patterns.”
Plus, the board of police commissioners approved an extra $1.64 million for its budget.
All of that adds up to $748,900 more in spending and a 5.8 per cent tax hike.
The cliche for newbies is baptism by fire, but this new council and mayor are enduring a chilly baptism by snow and ice.
Phil Tank is the digital opinion editor at the Saskatoon StarPhoenix.
Our websites are your destination for up-to-the-minute Saskatchewan news, so make sure to bookmark thestarphoenix.com and leaderpost.com. For Regina Leader-Post newsletters click here; for Saskatoon StarPhoenix newsletters click here