Chatham-Kent passes 4.99% tax hike

Civic Centre in Chatham-Kent, Ont. (Chris Campbell/CTV News Windsor)

Chatham-Kent approved a 4.99 per cent budget increase on Wednesday following two budget deliberation meetings.

Based on the average household with an assessment value of $176,200, homeowners will pay an additional $176.

Brock McGregor, Ward 6 Coun., and the budget chair in Chatham-Kent, said early estimates pointed to an 8 per cent increase.

“So, we really were looking at focusing on some of the new pressures we're facing as a municipality,” McGregor told CTV News.

He highlighted the increased financial pressure from social issues such as homelessness and housing.

According to a news release issued by the municipality, about 2.35 per cent of the increase is for spending on social issues.

“Whether that's in some of the investments in policing or investments in community safety, investments in the transitional cabin program,” McGregor said. “That's really an area that we've seen a lot of increased expense, unfortunately, not an area we've seen much provincial support from.”

In September, Chatham-Kent approved $3.8 million for the creation of 50 tiny transitional cabins.

Prior to passing the budget, council decided to dip into a reserve to further lower the tax levy.

Budget deliberations marked the first yearly update to Chatham-Kent’s 2024-2027 Multi-Year Budget.

“Residents we're expecting us to certainly come in lower than the 9.5 per cent that was getting floated around a few months ago, so we're quite a way from that,” McGregor said. “But I think there's still an expectation that we're going to invest in infrastructure in the community, and there really has been a lot of encouragement to do more on the social issue files.”

The municipality noted existing municipal services account for 1.88 per cent of this year’s increase, and more than $4 million has been earmarked for infrastructure.

While previous figures indicated the municipality’s 2026 budget could include an increase near 8 per cent, McGregor said it's too early to say. In the meantime, he’s hoping to see more financial support from other levels of government to help ease the budget process.