Saskatoon proposes 7.32 per cent 2015 property tax increase

Watch above: City of Saskatoon administration is proposing a 7.32 per cent property tax increase for 2015, with more money being spent on road repair and maintenance. Wendy Winiewski reports.

SASKATOON – Saskatoon city administration is looking for a 7.32 per cent property tax increase for 2015, with more money being spent on road repair and maintenance.

The increase is highlighted in the city’s preliminary 2015 budget.

The proposed hike is 0.11 percentage points lower than the final 2014 property tax increase.

Administration is looking for a dedicated property tax increase of 2.92 per cent which, if approved, would see $53.2 million on roads in 2015, $2.7 million more than this year.

“We’d like to see the pothole number go down over time as the road condition improves and that just gives us more money to invest in preventative treatments like microsurfacing and chip sealing,” said Jeff Jorgenson, the city’s transportation and utilities manager.

This would be the second year of a three-year phase-in to build the annual investment into roads.

In 2014, 200 kilometers of roadway was resurfaced and 188,000 potholes were patched.

The second biggest increase is for the police budget at 2.46 per cent while the fire department is looking for a 1.32 per cent increase to its budget.

Also, transit fares are expected to increase along with parking permits, golf course fees, passes to leisure centres and admission to the zoo.

Overall, the city is proposing a consolidated budget of $1.1 billion.

Almost one-million dollars is earmarked towards adding more resources to snow and ice management with another $200,000 going to street sweeping.

So what is the effect on property owners?

If approved by city council, a homeowner of a single-detached home worth $325,000 would see their property tax increase by $114 for the year. In 2014, the city’s portion of the property tax was $1,851.

This doesn’t include any increase in the education portion of the property tax, which is set by the provincial government in the spring.

City council debates the proposed 2015 budget on Dec. 2-3.