The City of Yellowknife has unveiled its “anything but normal” draft budget for 2024 with a proposed property tax increase of 7.22 percent.
Kavi Pandoo, the city’s director of corporate services, said developing this year’s budget was particularly difficult due to the unprecedented 2023 wildfire season.
The budget process itself was pushed back due to the three-week evacuation of Yellowknife.
“Budgeting always involves uncertainty,” Pandoo said. “Never has this been more accurate than over the last few years.”
He pointed to other challenges including high inflation rates, seemingly broken supply chains, lack of affordable housing, stagnating population growth, impending diamond mine closures, and underfunding from the territorial government.
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City manager Sheila Bassi-Kellett said while staff drafted a “lean budget” with a focus on essential infrastructure, capital costs continue to increase.
The draft budget currently projects nearly $143.9 million in spending and $93.3 million in revenue. City staff are recommending that $3.5 million be used from the general fund to limit the tax increase needed to cover expenditures. The city is legally required to deliver a balanced budget.
While the budget proposes a tax increase of 7.22 percent, the final budget is likely to have a lower increase.
Last year, for example, the draft budget proposed a 7.47-percent property tax increase while councillors ultimately approved a budget with a 4.37-percent increase.
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Kandoo said reviewing the budget and balancing services and infrastructure needs with a reasonable tax increase will be a challenge for councillors.
“I would not want to be in your shoes to be honest with you,” he said. “I know it’s difficult, however as councillors you know what’s best … how to take the city forward.”
Capital spending in the budget currently includes $3.6 million for the new aquatic centre, $4.4 million for the new fire hall, $2.1 million to replace and redeploy the city’s fleet, $2.8 million for lagoon sludge removal, and $2.2 million for the landfill project. Proposed operations and maintenance spending includes $75,000 to upgrade the city’s records management system, $100,000 for training and mentorship for staff, $100,000 in startup and initial funding for a destination marketing organization (expected to be recovered from hotel levy fees), $40,000 for a coffin-lowering device at the cemetery, and $100,000 for implementing recommendations of an independent review into the 2023 wildfire response.
Not included in the budget is the city’s proposal to transfer $3.5 million from the general fund to a new “emerging issues reserve” with the 2024 wildfire season in mind. Pandoo said current data indicates the 2023 wildfire season cost the city around $11.3 million, although the city hopes to recover most of those costs from other levels of government.
“Having no emergency fund set aside, administration believes, is no longer an option,” Pandoo said, pointing to other challenges like Covid-19 and cyber security.
“Let’s be honest, the amount of issues that are emerging nowadays makes you think the world has gone really bonkers.”
Members of the public can provide input on the draft budget until January 31. Councillors are scheduled to review the budget between February 5 and 8 and approve a final budget on February 12.
