The average household will see a property tax increase of $65.33. Pictured: Welland Mayor Frank Campion. Photo Credit: City of Welland.
Welland Mayor Frank Campion is proposing to raise property taxes by 3.54 per cent as part of his 2025 budget.
For a home with an average assessment value in Welland, which is $230,000, that represents a property tax increase of $65.33.
Property assessment values in Ontario have remained frozen since 2016.
Campion has strong mayor powers, meaning that he is responsible for presenting a budget to city council, which council can then vote to approve or try to amend.
In this case, council voted to give preliminary approval to Campion’s budget. Amendments can still be offered and considered by council. Any proposed amendments from councillors will be voted on Dec. 4.
Because of Campion’s strong mayor powers, Campion can veto any amendments passed by council, although council can override that veto with a two-thirds vote.
Campion has said he will not reject any amendments passed by council in a bid to work cooperatively with his colleagues.
This is Campion’s second budget presented since the Ford government introduced strong mayor powers, which gives mayors across Ontario significantly more control over city budgets.
A portal was set up online so that residents could engage in the city’s budget process. The portal, set up earlier this fall, had minimal uptake – only 59 people chose to participate in the online consultation process.
The mayor is proposing to create eight new city employee positions, including an economic development officer, a senior plans examiner, a human resources adviser, a facilities project coordinator, a parks project coordinator, a records and information management coordinator, an executive assistant to the director of infrastructure services, and a communications specialist.
All new positions but one are expected to have a salary of over $100,000.
A grant program called the New Welland Community Grant Program is also being created in 2025 budget year, with funds of $356,000. This new grant program is designed to support not-for-profit community groups and individuals “who enrich the lives of Welland residents.”
Thus far, 44 submissions for the grant have been submitted, including applications for arts and culture funding, events funding, and social services funding.
The city estimates Welland’s debt will stand at $97.1 million at the end of fiscal year 2025. This represents an increase of $25.9 million over 2024. Municipalities are not allowed to take on debt to fund their operating budgets, but they are allowed to take on a limited amount of debt to fund capital projects.
The budget estimates that 88 per cent of the overall budget is taken up by fixed costs, meaning costs that are on the books every year. The biggest fixed cost is salaries and benefits, which represents 53 per cent of Welland’s overall budget. Capital and debt financing comes in second at 19 per cent.
The overall expenses in Campion’s proposed operating budget are $80.4 million. That’s $4.7 million more than the 2024 operating budget, and will be paid for through higher revenues and a property tax increase of $1.7 million.
Jay Goldberg is the Ontario Director at the Canadian Taxpayers Federation. He previously served as a policy fellow at the Munk School of Public Policy and Global Affairs. Jay holds a Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Toronto.
