Saskatoon city council budget debates drop 2024 property tax increase by 1.3%, extend into 4th day

Saskatoon's municipal leaders began their third day of budget deliberations comparing the pace to a turtle and joking about finishing by Christmas Eve. 

Councillors considered more than a dozen opportunities to chip away at the potential 2024 and 2025 property tax by the end of day Thursday.

The day's final update from chief financial officer Clae Hack had the projected property tax increases at 5.94 per cent in 2024 and 5.42 per cent in 2025 if the city didn't make any further changes. 

Hack said councillors had reduced the projected 2024 deficit by $3.75 million over the three days of budget deliberations.

City council began Tuesday with a $21.1-million projected deficit and a 7.22 per cent property tax increase on the table.

The current projected deficits, according to Hack, are $17.4 million for 2024 and $16.9 million for 2025.

A large portion of the reduction came just before the end of council Thursday with a motion to lower fuel cost estimates by $0.10 and save $600,000.

As the end of Thursday neared, councillors quickened their pace. Despite that, council will come back Friday to finish the job.

Council looked at possible cuts ranging from hundreds of thousands of dollars to much smaller line items. One item discussed was youth programming that targets the vulnerable population and those who can't afford similar programming, including a skateboard program — a potential $48,700 savings in 2024.

Council voted against the cut, with Ward. 10 Coun. Zach Jeffries stating, "Small dollars, big impact. I don't support this cut."

On Thursday morning, Saskatoon city council re-examined a decision not to cut future full-time equivalent positions from the city's Material Recovery Centre, eventually deciding in a tight vote to eliminate four positions and save about $225,000 with hopes to maintain the centre's hazardous household waste service to a lesser degree than planned.

That followed a narrowly defeated motion the day before to cut all 11 proposed full-time equivalent roles at the recovery centre from the budget.

The recovery centre opened at the city's landfill last month as part of a 70 per cent waste diversion goal.

"It's pretty unusual for us to open a facility and not staff it properly," Ward 7 Coun. Mairin Loewen said during the debate.

Ward 1 Coun. Darren Hill argued in opposition, saying that a smaller, existing private facility in Saskatoon with a similar purpose manages to divert tonnes of waste. He said he expects the city's recovery centre can still provide services to residents "without digging deeper into the purses of the taxpayers."

Councillors also passed a motion asking administration to report about the first full year of operations at the material recovery centre ahead of the 2025 budget.

Council will reconvene Friday morning to continue deliberations.