Major progress has been made towards balancing Hamilton’s 2017 operating budget.
City politicians have voted to hike recreation user fees by 7%, excluding ice rental rates, while hourly on-street parking meter rates will increase from $1 to $1.50 per hour.
Ward 6 Councillor Tom Jackson stresses that he’ll be watching closely to ensure the higher user fees don’t negatively affect participation levels.
In regards to the HSR, a number of “school extra” buses which run to and from places like McMaster University and Mohawk College during times of peak demand are being eliminated.
As well, enhancements originally planned for this year under year three of the city’s 10 year transit strategy are being deferred until 2018, since a corresponding funding agreement with the federal government has not been finalized.
Another potential cut, still on the table and so far only discussed behind closed doors, could involve the closure or sale of eight “community halls” in Ancaster, Flamborough and Glanbrook.
General Manager of Finance Mike Zegarac says budget discussions, to date, have eliminated 83 jobs at the City of Hamilton.
Even so, he describes it as a “maintenance” budget rather than an “austerity” budget.
Zegarac notes that the focus has been maintaining service levels and improving tax competitiveness while reducing resource requirements through “consolidation”.
The latest changes, with property value reassessment factored in, bring the residential tax increase down to 2.3% or $76 on a home valued at $315 thousand.
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