Residents of the Town of Niagara-on-the-Lake can expect a much smaller property tax increase for 2026 than in recent years.
Following a 6.74 per cent increase in 2024 and a 7.34 increase in 2025, residents could be forgiven for expecting more bad news from the 2026 budget process.
However, staff and Lord Mayor Gary Zalepa are pitching a property tax increase of 1.81 per cent for 2026, well below the rate of inflation.
That represents an average property tax increase of $27.78 for Niagara-on-the-Lake homeowners.
One of the reasons for the change could be that this is the first year in which the Town is going through the strong mayor budget process, after Queen’s Park extended strong mayor powers to more municipalities earlier this year.
The 2026 budgeting process is now underway, with Council able to consider amendments to the proposed budget until Nov. 17. Zalepa then has eight days to potentially veto any amendments made by Council, followed by an eight-day period in which Council can try to override any veto Zalepa tries to make. The budget should be finalized by Dec. 3.
Staff had originally anticipated a property tax increase of 10.25 per cent for 2026, but a number of measures were taken to mitigate it. The Budget Office found $450,000 in savings, and additional money was found through parking revenue, planning fees, reinstated bus revenues, and one per cent growth in assessments, among others.
The heritage shuttle will also be funded with municipal accommodation tax revenue next year, which reduced pressure on the tax levy by some $340,000.
The top five factors driving more spending for 2026, which is why so much budget offsetting was needed, include an increase in salaries of $592,000, fleet transfers of $170,000, capital transfers of $150,000, debt costs of $130,000, and insurance premiums of $130,000.
Niagara-on-the-Lake staff are expecting a total operating budget of $43.2 million for 2026, an increase of just under $3 million from the 2025 operating budget, which was $40.4 million.
Kyle Freeborn, corporate services director, noted during the special council meeting last Wednesday that Zalepa did meet with a number of Councillors one-on-one ahead of the presentation of the budget, so, even though it was prepared under the strong mayor budget process, there was clear input from Council.
The storm levy is not expected to change for 2026. It will have a total budget of just under $1 million and will cost the average household $120.
Jay Goldberg is the Canadian Affairs Manager at the Consumer Choice Center. He previously served as the Ontario Director at the Canadian Taxpayers Federation and 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.
