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w at er lo oc hr on ic le .c a W at er lo o C hr on ic le | T hu rs da y, Ja nu ar y 23 ,2 02 0 | 4 (CAO) Tim Anderson said it was mainly because staff received additional infor- mation on the detailed de- sign. "We started that budget process with what I call a 'Class D' budget estimate," Anderson said. "Through- out 2018 and 2019, our archi- tect working on the design vision for the facility has really been able to crystal- ize what those budget num- bers should look like." Anderson said there was also a complication with the elevator require- ments on the project, which applied some unan- ticipated financial pres- sure. The presentation of de- partmental business plans commenced Monday after- noon, starting with the of- fice of the CAO. "We as a city have some really big pieces of city building coming online now," said Bonoguore. "We've got the (expanded) rec complex and a new li- brary coming, which is great. We also have this big, thorny infrastructure issue that we're trying to grapple with. "I'm trying to find places where we might be able to slow down in order to try and balance these compet- ing issues." The City of Waterloo's new three-year budget calls for annual property tax increases of 3.4, 3.3 and 3.4 per cent. If approved next month, it's estimated that the average home would pay an additional $200 more by 2022, com- pared to 2018, for the city portion of the property tax bill. By 2022, city taxes and drainage fees would reach almost $1,600 for a home currently valued at just under $400,000. The tax increases ad- dress infrastructure and maintenance backlog is- sues; a recent report showed investment is re- quired to help pay for a funding shortfall that has resulted in more than 30 per cent of tax-base assets being in poor or very poor condition. According to fi- nancial planners, the con- dition of city assets would decline under current ar- rangements and, in 25 years, approximately 75 per cent of tax-base assets will be in poor or very poor condition. Funding in the budget is needed to deal with de- ferred maintenance, said Mark Dykstra, commis- sioner of community ser- vices. "This all enables us to respond proactively and deal with what we own to ensure we're caring for it," he said. However Coun. Diane Freeman, who a week prior floated the idea of delaying the decorative lighting planned for Caroline Street in 2020, said the pressure on a recessive tax base is too much for some people. Freeman said there are always projects budgeted that aren't achievable within the three-year win- dow and wondered about areas where money could be reallocated. "Because I think we do need to make some tough choices," she said. "I'm just asking, are there other places to look?" According to the city's finance staff, of the $294 million earmarked in the three-year capital pro- gram, only $66 million is funded by the tax base. Many of the line items are co-projects funded by de- velopment charges - fees paid for by developers to pay for growth-related in- frastructure. "I know the budget team this year was really mind- ful given the significant amount of capital coming through this term of coun- cil and our ability to deliv- er," Anderson said. "We're activating things that are kind of necessary in many cases or connected to other commitments we've got out there, but we can certainly look at it be- tween now and capital bud- get day." Councillors also wanted to learn more about new positions being contem- plated, including director of strategic initiatives - a senior position in the CAO's office. Coun. Jen Vasic ques- tioned whether the role would entail working joint- ly with other regional mu- nicipalities on areas of shared interest, which she learned would be the case. "This question comes from someone who feels we're over-governed and is supportive of amalgam- ation," she prefaced. Another position is be- ing proposed for festivals and events to expand the Lumen and Open Streets festivals and better sup- port community events overall to grow the tourism sector. Discussion also briefly touched on plans for a city- run Canada Day event, see- ing that the University of Waterloo announced it would no longer continue hosting one. The city will be exploring grant- and pri- vate-sector sponsorship opportunities to offset some of the expense mov- ing forward. Departmental business plans will continue to be presented to council next Monday before both the capital and operating bud- gets are approved in Febru- ary. More information can be found on the city's web- site. STORY BEHIND THE STORY Councillors are begin- ning to look at ways to reduce proposed property tax increases of 3.4, 3.3 and 3.4 per cent over the next three years, but need to address a funding short- fall to pay for necessary maintenance and repairs to city facilities. Depart- mental business plans are being presented to Water- loo council ahead of budget deliberations in the coming weeks. COUNCIL Continued from page 1 COUNCILLORS ALSO WANTED TO LEARN MORE ABOUT NEW POSITIONS BEING CONTEMPLATED Waterloo councillors will be looking for savings, with budget discussions planned over the next few weeks. Dreamstime Photo