Emphasizing pressures from inflation, population growth and strained infrastructure, city of Calgary administration has brought forward a proposal that touts a 15% increase in property taxes in 2027 with more potential increases to follow in years to come.
According to a City of Calgary report released Tuesday, a typical $706,000 home could see an additional $36 charge monthly for property taxes.
Add in projected water and waste increases, and the total could reach $52 more a month. The figures are based on all funding requests receiving approval.
A more than 50 dollar monthly increase is also touted for 2028, 2029 and 2030.
“Calgary is a rapidly growing city and that growth increases demand for transportation, public safety, water infrastructure, recreation planning and services and community amenities just to name a few. And the question is how we keep pace while maintaining the service levels that Calgarians expect,” city of Calgary CAO David Duckworth says.
However, Calgary Mayor Jeromy Farkas stresses the figures are preliminary, and while he says funding is needed for infrastructure and other services, he intends for council to pare the budgeted amount down.
The release of the numbers by council follows an admission from councillor Landon Johnston that he leaked confidential budget documents earlier this month.
Speaking to the Strategic Meeting of Council Tuesday, Duckworth said, “There’s been a lot of discussion about a specific property tax number and I want to be clear that number is not a proposed budget; it’s not an administrative recommendation and it’s not a council decision. It was simply the result of an early look at potential investments that are needed to sustain the services that Calgarians rely on.”
The city budget won’t be finalized until late November with the provincial property tax amount brought forward in February.