Budget talks begin at Calgary city hall

Budget talks begin at Calgary city hall Calgary city council will be discussing its new budget, which could include a tax increase for residents. Mason DePatie reports.

City council will start discussing mid-cycle budget adjustments on Monday, which may include property tax increases.

The discussion will cover the next two years of city finances and will likely take several days of debate.

The meeting will begin with city administration presenting presentations to council Monday morning.

In September, a report from city administration indicated they proposed a 4.5 per cent increase to the budget.

Mayor Jyoti Gondek said a budget increase wasn't council's direction, so now a property tax increase of 3.6 per cent is proposed for 2025.

If approved, the rate for single-family homes would jump by 3.9 per cent.

Using the median price of $700,000, the average single-family home would pay about $13.46 more per month next year with the increase.

Property taxes for condos and apartments would jump a much higher 10.5 per cent, and property for non-residential properties would increase by 1.4 per cent.

Council will also discuss a pair of borrowing bylaws totalling just over a billion dollars.

The money would be used to upgrade and build more water infrastructure in the city, including a new treatment plant and at least one main feeder line.

People can sign up to speak on front of council or provide written feedback via the city’s website.

With files from Jordan Kanygin