The City of Cornwall held its Resident Café event on November 5, 2024, inviting community members to participate in discussions on the proposed 2025 municipal budget. Held at the Cornwall Civic Complex, this session allowed the dozens of residents who attended to engage directly with city staff, ask questions, and provide feedback on budgetary plans. The Resident Café, combined with a town hall meeting this year, reflects the city’s commitment to fostering transparency and encouraging public involvement in the budgeting process.
The proposed 2025 budget emphasizes strategic financial planning to sustain essential services while promoting growth and addressing long-term needs. It includes a 6.76% tax levy increase, which would raise property taxes by about $225 for homes assessed at $176,700 (in Q3 2024, Cornwall’s median price for a single detached home was $435,000).
Mayor Justin Towndale noted, “Residents understand inflation’s impact, and while they know we can’t have a zero-increase budget, they ask us to keep increases reasonable.” Achieving the Council’s goal of limiting the increase to 4% would, however, require removing $2.5 million from the budget, presenting a challenging balance between fiscal responsibility and service provision.
“We’re looking for feedback from the public on a variety of areas—transit services, waste management, recreation, emergency services, and human services,” said Tracey Bailey, the city’s Interim CAO and General Manager of Financial Services and Treasurer. She emphasized the collaborative nature of the budget process, explaining, “Departments bring their budgets to the senior team, where we review and strategize together, ensuring council’s priorities are met.”
The budget aims to address inflationary pressures, with an 11.4% ($11.9 million) rise in salaries and benefits, totaling $116.3 million, to attract and retain skilled professionals. The capital budget, set at $29 million, prioritizes infrastructure maintenance, facility improvements, and community housing upgrades. Towndale highlighted the importance of community understanding in these budgetary decisions: “I want the public to fullyunderstand the budget—it’s likely the biggest thing council does each year. We want residents to see how funds are allocated and give them the opportunity to ask questions directly to those who work in our departments.”
Katherine Wells, Director of Government Relations and Corporate Strategies, noted the city’s efforts to make the budget more accessible and engaging, saying, “This year, we’ve combined the Resident Café with a town hall meeting in one evening, based on resident feedback. It’s a great way for the community to engage in the budget process.” Wells also encouraged residents to leave insights on a visioning board, which will bepresented to the council for further consideration.
The budget includes substantial increases to address critical service and infrastructure needs. Debt payments increased by 42.23% to $8.7 million, while insurance costs grew by 12.5%. Paramedic Services saw a 12.14% rise, with added staffing and equipment. Contributions to reserves expanded by 25.88% ($2.5 million) set aside to help the city plan for infrastructure maintenance, unexpected expenses, and future capital projects.
Community safety also emerged as a focal point in this year’s budget. Shawna Spowart, Cornwall’s Chief of Police, explained how new legislative requirements have impacted budgetary needs, particularly in the area of training and equipment. “Our emergency response officers now wear heavy-duty, fire-retardant gear, and frontline patrol officers deploy daily with carbine rifles and hard body armor. This equipment, while enhancing safety, comes with a significant cost,” Spowart shared. She also highlighted future plans for community engagement regarding potential sites for a new police station.
The budget also aligns with Council’s strategic goals of enhancing housing, building community connections, and advancing net-zero emissions targets by 2050. These objectives are central to the budget’s framework, guiding decisions to meet Cornwall’s evolving needs. As
The City of Cornwall’s annual budget development process involves an annual cycle. From August to October, city departments prepare and update their budgets for the upcoming year. In October and November, city managers and the financial planning team review these submissions to assess the overall impact. In November, the recent Resident Café and Town Hall Meeting allowed the public to provide feedback. Finally, in December, the City Council adopts the budget, sets the tax rate, and establishes utility rates for water and wastewater.
A draft of the 2025 Operating and Capital Budget and a draft of the 2025 Water and Wastewater Budget can be viewed on the City website. https://www.cornwall.ca/en/city-hall/2025-budget.aspx
