Saskatoon budget deliberations begin with a 3.95% tax bump

As it stands the average homeowner in Saskatoon will see another $65 dollars added to their property taxes next year, but that’s likely to change.

This week we find out how much taxpayer are on the hook for as city councillors and the mayor deliberate the 2016 budget at city hall.

Coming into deliberation, officials are looking at a 3.95 per cent increase, made up mostly of a road repair and preservation levy, money for sound walls and added costs for policing and the city fire department.

Similar to the deliberations for the 2015 budget, Saskatoon Police Service Chief Clive Weighill is once against asking for eight additional constables in 2016. Weighill asked for eight officers in 2015, but only got four as council favoured a lower tax increase.

A few months ago the proposed tax increase was sitting at 4.35 per cent. Chief Financial Officer Kerry Tarasoff said the proposed tax increase was brought under four per cent through operating efficiencies and additional revenue from a electrical utility rate increase.
 
On the capital side, the budget proposes $177.2 million in various projects, which is a reduction of over 48-million from 2015.

Notable projects

$15.5 million for sound walls
$5.5 million to rehab the Idylwyld Drive Ruth overpass.
$1.2 million for a new fire hall.
$1 million for an arena partnership