- Mayor Lovatt tabled Stouffville’s 2025 Operating and Capital Budgets during the Nov. 6, 2024, Council meeting.
- The budget proposes a 5.69% increase to Stouffville’s tax levy, which accounts for just under 34% of residential property tax bills.
- The increase includes an additional 2.69% in operating levies, 2% to meet the Town’s asset management needs, and 1% for the Main Street Reconstruction project.
- When considered alongside the Provincial education portion and the proposed York Region portion, Stouffville residents will face an estimated blended property tax increase of 3.86%.
- The Town has just over $31 million in capital projects planned for 2025.
- Stouffville’s 2025 Water and Wastewater Budget is proposing a 4.4% increase in blended user fees.
Stouffville’s population was estimated at 56,580 residents as of August 2024, and is projected to exceed 100,000 by 2051. With this growth comes greater demand for services, increased pressure on local infrastructure, and a need for investments in growth-accommodating capital projects.
“In 2024, Whitchurch-Stouffville saw several key developments that directly impacted planning for 2025. These include the approval of significant infrastructure projects, increasing demand for municipal services due to population growth, and the continued focus on addressing aging infrastructure,” the Budget Book states.
As proposed, 2025 operations will require $87.4 million in gross expenditures—a $10.84 million increase over the 2024 operating budget. This increase is driven primarily by inflation, the addition of 18 new full-time equivalent staff positions, and rising costs to maintain existing service levels.
“Salaries and benefits represent the largest portion of operating costs, accounting for approximately 47.6% of total gross expenditures,” the Budget Book adds. “To ensure the Town remains competitive in attracting and retaining skilled professionals, a review of remuneration for non-union employees has been completed. This review aligns compensation with industry standards, enabling the Town to recruit and retain top talent.”
Stouffville adjusts its property tax rate annually to meet budget demands, with $51.86 million in 2025 property tax collections expected to make up nearly 60% of annual revenue.
The Town’s rate is combined with the Regional and Provincial education portions of property tax bills to determine the blended tax rate, which is then multiplied by each home’s assessed value. Property assessments from 2016, which were used to determine 2024 levies, will continue in 2025.
Of total property tax revenue, 33.78% is allocated to the Town, 42.59% to York Region, and 26.63% to the Province of Ontario for education. As currently proposed, Stouffville residents will face an estimated 3.86% blended tax levy increase.
Stouffville’s 2024 tax rate was the seventh lowest across the Greater Toronto Hamilton area, a trend expected to continue, according to Mayor Iain Lovatt. “From what I have seen so far from other municipalities, this will be one of the lowest 2025 blended tax rate increases in the GTA,” he said during his presentation to Council.
The Town also aims to secure $13.16 million in 2025 user fees, paid by residents for Town services and activities like recreation programming. A 3% increase in these fees is proposed to offset inflationary pressures on service delivery.
“When the budget process began earlier this year, we were looking at an operating budget pressure of 16.13%,” Lovatt added. “This did not include the requests for 36 new full-time employees, which would have added another 4% of pressure on the tax levy.”
He credited “hard number crunching” by Staff, identification of budgetary efficiencies, and revenue growth for helping reduce the required 2025 levy increase.
On the capital side, over $31 million in projects have been identified for 2025. These include infrastructure upgrades and expansion, equipment acquisition, and studies such as those included within the Town’s updated Housing Accelerator Fund application. $2.58 million of the year’s capital budget will be supported through front-ended funding agreements with developers.
The two largest projects in the 2025 capital budget are the $9.75 million reconstruction of Fire Station 5-2 in Ballantrae and a new $2.25 million Tenth Line South Park. The $2 million Winona Drive reconstruction project, $1.5 million expansion and revitalization of Civic Square, and $1 million for design work on a Leisure Centre pool expansion complete the top five capital expenditures for the year.
Design work for the Tenth Line South Park, located at McKean Drive and Yakefarm Boulevard, is already underway. “This Ward 3 community park is being advanced much sooner than has been our past practice,” Lovatt said of the project. “Going forward, as subdivisions are developed, we hope to have the local park amenities developed simultaneously so that new residents do not have to wait to enjoy park amenities when they move into their homes.”
Asset management planning, highlighted in an October Bullet Point News article, focuses on the renewal of Stouffville’s existing assets, including roads, water, wastewater, and stormwater management infrastructure. About 29% of planned capital expenditures in 2025 are for asset management.
These costs will be partially covered by the proposed capital levy increases, though the Town is currently facing a $7.8 million deficit in its Asset Management Plan.
“Without the Province opening up the 404 corridor for commercial development, or implementation of a new financial model for municipalities, this gap will continue to grow,” Lovatt explained. He hopes his work as a Federation of Canadian Municipalities board member will support advocacy to higher levels of government for that new municipal framework.
The Town’s 10-year capital plan represents over $405 million in costs, with more than half allocated to studies, repairs, and rehabilitation for Stouffville’s road infrastructure, as well as transportation-related fleet and equipment replacement.
$22.166 million of this capital funding is earmarked for the Main Street Reconstruction project, expected to take place from 2026 to 2028. A continuation of the 1% Main Street Reconstruction tax levy increase to support the project has been included in this year’s budget.
Under the Strong Mayor Powers system, Council has 21 days to propose amendments to the budget. If no amendments are submitted, the budget will be automatically adopted on Nov. 28. If Council approves amendments, Mayor Lovatt has the option to veto them by providing a written statement explaining his reasons.
If the Mayor does not exercise his veto, the amended budget will be adopted on Dec. 3. Should Lovatt veto any amendments, Council can override his veto with a two-thirds majority vote, with final adoption on Dec. 12.
“Despite being given Strong Mayor Powers to deliver budgets, I’ve committed to my Council colleagues that we will work together as a team to advance budgets, focus on our shared priorities, and execute our strategic plan,” Lovatt said. “Council and Staff are unified in our commitment to enhancing our residents’ experiences…and I believe the 2025 budget demonstrates that once again.”
