Before having an opportunity to make cuts to the draft 2021 city budget, council members learned Tuesday the increase has jumped to 3.63 per cent.
They were presented with a $502,800 increased funding requirement for The Elliott Community long-term care centre that pushed the projected residential tax increase up from 3.52 per cent.
Those additional funds are needed, explained CEO Michelle Karker, to bring staff wages up to the level of competitors – 27 workers have taken jobs elsewhere since the pandemic started.
“Job competition is fierce,” Karker told council. “We are approaching the tipping point … We need to fix this.”
Other changes that contributed to the increased tax rate include $525,000 for phase-in of the Baker District operating budget, the addition of a planner position at $115,000 and $175,000 in lost education tax revenue. Those are partially offset by $1 million in assessment growth.
Tuesday’s special council meeting featured a number of presentations from city staff as well as boards such as The Elliott. Council members made no cuts or other changes to the draft plan.
That’s something that will be addressed during a future meeting.
“I think it might be good to hear from the public,” noted Mayor Cam Guthrie at the end of the day-long meeting.
Council members did, however, raise a few items in the draft budget that may inspire efforts to bring down the current draft residential tax increase or capital spending.
Chief among them are two pandemic-related relief efforts set at $350,000 each – one to assist businesses in the tourism sector and another intended to help not-for-profit organizations, unincorporated groups and individuals adapt to meet community needs. Both are new to the budget and are proposed as one-time initiatives.
Coun. Cathy Downer inquired about the need to fund $300,000 in community grants, which is also included in the budget, as well as $350,000 for organizations.
Coun. Dominique O’Rourke noted there are many upper-tier government funding programs designed to assist groups with pandemic-related problems.
Another item that caught the attention of council is a plan to put $500,000 annually into a reserve to fund the city’s renewable energy projects.
Coun. Rodrigo Goller pondered about cutting that contribution in half for 2021.
Coun. Christine Billings noted renewable energy projects also receive about $300,000 in funding from the sale of carbon offsets this year – something O’Rourke questioned.
The proposed tax increase of 3.52 per cent meant an increase of about $132 for the average residential city property, valued at $388,000.
However, that figure can be impacted by changes in individual property assessments, phase-ins and shifts between tax sectors, James Krauter, the city’s manager of taxation and revenue, told GuelphToday.
Tax sectors include residential, industrial and commercial properties.
The draft 2021 budget would see most city fees rise by about two per cent if approved as-is, but no increase in hourly parking fees or bus fares is proposed.
Residential property owners are also slated to see an average two per cent rise in water, wastewater and stormwater rates.
Of the projected 3.52 per cent residential tax increase, Guthrie noted about 1.3 per cent of it is “uncontrollable” by council as it stems from the city’s various boards and shared service providers.
Here’s a look at the budgets they presented to council on Tuesday:
Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health (WDGPH)
The health unit’s draft budget sits at $23.7 million, of which the city is responsible for 15.3 per cent, with the rest coming from Wellington and Dufferin counties as well as the provincial government. For 2021, the budget includes a $97,000 increase for the city, much of which is attributable to growth-related issues.
“This is a status quo budget for the most part,” commented David Kingma, WDGPH’s director of administrative services.
Guelph Public Library
With a proposed 1.79 per cent increase for 2021, $9.79 million in total, the library has put forward a “skinny budget,” CEO Steven Kraft told council, noting it doesn’t include any new staff or other “expansion requests.”
The budget forecast includes increases of 2.17 per cent in 2022 and 1.92 per cent in 2023, along with 36.31 per cent in 2024 when the new central library is set to come onstream.
“We will do our best to smooth that out,” Kraft said of the projected 2024 increase, of which much is attributable to new staff that will be needed. “We don’t have enough staff to provide some of the programming large urban libraries are doing.”
Not included in the budget proposal in front of council, Kraft said the library board is considering moving to a fine-free model by the end of 2021, following in the footsteps of other library systems. This would remove between $200,000 and $250,000 in revenue, which typically goes against general operating expenses.
“Most urban libraries are moving to that,” he said of eliminating fines, noting fines can be a financial barrier that prevent people from using the library.
The Elliott Community
Since the start of the pandemic, The Elliott Community has lost more than 100 volunteers as well as 27 staff members who took positions elsewhere. As a result, CEO Michelle Karker explained she and others on the administration end have had to take up duties they otherwise wouldn’t, like feeding residents.
Now it’s asking for a budget increase to bring salaries in line with competitors to help them attract and retain staff, not add new positions.
“Job competition is fierce,” Karker told council. “We are approaching the tipping point. … We need to fix this.”
In turn, its draft operating budget includes a $502,800 increased contribution from the city, bringing it to $1.87 million. Without the increase, board of trustees member David Kennedy, said operations are “not sustainable.”
This is the first operating budget increase beyond inflation requested from the city since 2014.
Wellington County shared social services
City taxpayers are looking at a $500,000 decrease in contributions to Wellington County related to the administration of Ontario Works and Children’s Early Years centres, as well as social and affordable housing.
The decrease, explained Shauna Calder, the county’s manager of finance, stems largely from a new tax exemption for non-profit and cooperative housing initiatives, as well as the opening of more childcare spaces in the county. Due to the nature of the cost sharing split, the latter moves some of the administrative costs over to the county.
Guelph Police Service
With a budget of more than $48.3 million, Guelph Police Service is projecting a 4.75 per cent increase. That hike, explained chief Gordon Cobey, is the result of previously approved commitments and obligations, as well as realizing the full impact of staff additions during 2020.
“We have been very mindful that ours is a tax-supported budget,” he told council.
As approved in the 2020 budget, police hired an additional 30.5 positions throughout the year. Those hires, Cobey noted, were phased in to keep costs down but will be fully realized in 2021.
In 2019, the police department recorded $2 million in overtime for officers – the equivalent of 20 full-time positions. Cobey is optimistic the new additions will result in a reduction in overtime costs “for the first time ever.”
Grand River Conservation Authority
The city can expect a 1.9 per cent increase, from $1.68 million to $1.688 million, to its contribution to the local conservation authority.
That’s due to continuation of existing programs, in the wake of a drop in revenue from conservation authority visitors, explained CAO Samantha Lawson. The agency’s overall budget has gone down from $36 million to $30.6 million, of which municipal levies make up about 40 per cent.
No change is being requested for the special downtown levy that supports the efforts of the Downtown Guelph Business Association.
Council will hear budget requests from delegates on Nov. 25, starting at 6 p.m., with consideration of approval set for a special meeting on Dec. 1, with a 2 p.m. start time.
Both meetings will be live-streamed at guelph.ca/live.
If needed, an additional special council meeting is scheduled for Dec. 3 at 2 p.m.
The deadline to register as a delegate for council’s Nov. 25 meeting is 10 a.m. on Nov. 20. Visit guelph.ca/city-hall/budget-and-finance/city-budget/budget-delegations.
