Gananoque draft budget calls for 12 per cent tax hike

Gananoque property owners face a 2025 tax increase of 12 per cent as the budget process begins, an increase the mayor says is necessary to make up for the historic underfunding of reserves.

The Town of Gananoque’s 2025 draft budget is now available for public consideration and review. Budget deliberations will take place in the council chambers at Town Hall at 9 a.m. on Thursday.

“As I’m sure you’re all aware, the Town of Gananoque is facing budgetary pressures in the same way as many other municipalities,” said Mayor John Beddows.

“Our capital reserves have been historically under-resourced and up to 2022 transfers to capital reserves to maintain and replace the property of the taxpayers of Gananoque only averaged 50 per cent or so of what should have been set aside.”

Since 2022, the town has managed to increase that amount to an average of about 76 per cent of what should be set aside on residents’ behalf, Beddows added.

“But we’re still well below the capital reserves we should be saving,” said the mayor. “This year’s budget will take us closer. We are in the process of catching up on necessary, but previously deferred, work and we all know that as time passes, cost rises.”

New provincial regulations like the Community Safety and Policing Act, the requirement to run cameras through sewer lines in watersheds, and other measures have imposed mandatory costs onto municipalities which the town has to fund through municipal property taxes, he said.

“We have no choice in this,” said Beddows. “The province is making us implement the changes and therefore imposing new costs.”

The town’s asset management plan (AMP) underscores the replacement cost of town assets, as well as the shortfall in contributions to capital reserves over time.

“There are still major unknowns for us to have a good understanding of just how much money we will need,” said Beddows.

As an example, Gananoque has never had a map of the storm sewer system, but is creating one now.

“Until that work is done, we won’t know whether our current storm sewer system is adequate for current needs or just how much work might need to be done,” said the mayor.

Thursday’s budget meeting allows for public questions and comments, and Beddows is urging his community to take part.

“This is your opportunity to weigh in, not only with general comments about affordability but also on specific items and expenses in the 2025 Draft Budget,” said Beddows.

Under the town’s procedural bylaw, each member of the public who speaks will be allotted two minutes to address council.

“I assure you that I, and the rest of your council, are focused on needs and not on wants,” said Beddows. “We are facing a difficult decision year, and figuring out how to catch up on previously deferred work and capital contributions coupled with new costs from the province while delivering the greatest long-term benefit to secure Gananoque’s future without imposing an undue burden on today’s municipal taxpayers is the great challenge of this term of council.”

There are no easy answers, Beddows adds, and deferring necessary work is a poor option as the cost of service delivery and capital maintenance will only increase going forward.

Borrowing is an option, but that leads to a tax increase as well, to service the debt.

“There is only one taxpayer,” said Beddows. “I know this, I’m one of them. I invite (our residents’) attention while we address this challenge.”