City council faces feedback from Calgarians about next year's budget

Calgarians got the chance to give their feedback to city council about the proposed changes to next year's municipal budget, which notably calls for a 3.6 per cent property tax increase and will leave several major projects unfunded for now.

Over three dozen people signed up to speak to council on Monday. Public submissions included calls to lower property taxes, improve Calgary Transit, and for the city to spend more on infrastructure and local recreation facilities.

Monday's first speaker of the public submission period was Arthur Gallant, who lives in Calgary's Beltline community. Gallant said his monthly rent has increased by 43 per cent since moving to the city over three-and-a-half years ago, which he saidaccounts for over half of his net income.

"Every day, I am worse off than the previous day," Gallant told council.

Even though he makes more than the minimum wage at his full time job, Gallant saidhe's left with only 60 dollars a month to live on.

It's why he's hoping city council will make public transit more affordable or expand the eligibility for the low income transit pass, which he currently does not qualify for.

"Although I live within walking distance of my employer and other amenities, I cannot afford to ride Calgary transit places such as my doctor's office without sacrificing how much I spend on food and other necessities. The cost of riding Calgary transit is a barrier to my social and physical well being."

Calgary Transit cost concerns

While the proposed budget includes $19 million in new spending from the city to maintain the low income transit pass, Ward 10's Coun. Andre Chabot is opposed to themulti-million dollar injection, as he believes the funding is a provincial responsibility.

"There are some things right now that the council has decided to fund as permanent funds that we could move to one-time funding, especially because they are not necessarily the responsibility of the municipal government," Chabot told reporters on Monday.

"It's not that there's no money. Just show me one year where we've not had a positive variance in our budget that we couldn't find funding, specifically for one-time funding, once again in the future."

Spending on Calgary Transit was top of mind for many people who spoke during Monday's public hearing.

Gary Thompson, a new property owner in his twenties, saidhe's saved money in Calgary by not owning a vehicle and using his electric bicycle.

Thompson, who had an e-bike that was stolen and an e-scooter that was hit by a car, shared some of his own math with council while asking for improvements to the city's transit system.

"So if my bikes were to average $1,500 and last two years before getting stolen or destroyed in an accident, that's $7,500 over 10 years. Plus maintenance let's say $200 per year brings it to $9,500," he said, adding that, at $115 per month, an adult monthly transit pass would total $13,800 after 10 years.

"It's cheaper to get my e-bike stolen every two years than it is to take the bus."

He said it's been a challenge to live in Calgary without a car, andthat Calgarians struggle to maintain a lifestyle like his becausepublic transportation isn't "adequately funded." Thompson also believestransit is "not as connected or as safe as most people want it to be."

Important to deliver on 3.6%, not above, says mayor

Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek saidthe proposed 3.6 per cent increase to property taxes is below the rate of inflation plus population growth, and she's hoping for a budget that does not go above or below the proposed tax increase.

"I think it's going to be very important for this council to deliver a budget that does not go above 3.6 per cent," she said. "That's a commitment that we made to Calgarians two years ago, it's something that I intend to honour."

During mid-cycle budget adjustments in September, city officials said growth demands would require a 4.5 per cent property tax increase, nearly 1 percentage point higher than the tax hike council approved previously.

However, earlier this month, that plan was walked back after city administration said it made some changes including using millions of dollars of income from city investments - to bring that proposed increase back down to 3.6 per cent.

If the new rate is approved by council, the proposed plan would see the owner of a median-priced home worth $700,000 paying about $8 more per month in municipal property tax.

CBC News previously reported that the proposed budget adjustments also include a list of unfunded operating and capital investments which the city says can't be accommodated at this time due to "significant financial pressures and constraints," but will be considered in future cycles should additional funding become available.

Some city councillors are expected to propose changes to lower the 3.6 per cent tax hike.

Ward 1 Coun. Sonya Sharp, however, said she believes further reducing the property tax jump is possible, and that "there's always a way to look for fiscal discipline."

"There are things in this corporation that are nice to have, and the public wouldn't even notice," Sharp told reporters on Monday afternoon.

"There are things in this budget that are critical police, fire critical things that Calgarians want, potholes being filled. But there are things in this corporation, if you want to dig deep, you can."

Other city councillors, such as Ward 7's Terry Wong, say the proposed tax increase puts an "excessive burden" on residential properties.

"I don't think that is an appropriate thing to do at times of affordability," said Wong.

"We need to be very sensitive about affordability for residential people, and we would do that by taking a look at the overall tax requisition and seeing what it is that we don't have to put on the residential base."

Although several city councillors said they will bring forward ideas for reducing that tax hike, Gondek says it's time for those council members to tell Calgarians where the city should allocate its funds.

"What are you going to cut? Are you going to cut public safety? Are you going to make it less safe for people to take transit after we worked so hard to improve that? Are you going to take away from recreation facilities that kids and their families rely on? Are you going to not invest in infrastructure and maintenance?" Gondek told reporters at City Hall during Monday's lunch break.

"Show us your math. Show us your plan."

City council's budget debate is expected to continue for much of this week.