A 12.9 per cent increase.
That's what the city is currently facing for its projected tax increase for 2025.
Speaking on AM800's The Morning Drive, mayor Drew Dilkens says the projected increase is 'absolutely unacceptable.'
"We know just from sort of the normal order of operations how things work and what numbers we can expect but we're seeing a different type of number this year," says Dilkens. "So for perspective without any reductions and without city council doing any of the work, the initial number is 12.9 per cent increase which is absolutely unacceptable."
He says the city is seeing pressures building up unlike its seen in the past decade and needs to do a lot of work to get the 12.9 per cent increase down.
"City council through the budget committees will be looking at all areas of the organization," he says. "The administration will be doing their regular work as they do to bring budget documents to city council as they've done every year for 20-years and together we're going to find a pathway to do this."
Earlier this month, Dilkens said he expected the 2025 budget to be the most challenging in nearly 20-years.
At that time, he blamed inflationary and contractual pressures involving staff salaries for the challenging operating budget and this morning shared more information on the projected increase.
"The starting point of the pressure is about seven per cent just with legislated and negotiated wage increases and inflationary pressures which is unlike we've seen in the last 15-years," says Dilkens.
Last week, the mayor appointed city councillors to three different committees to search for operational and service-level savings in the city's operating budget for next year.
In 2024, the budget was passed with a 3.91 percent property tax increase; however, the tax rate was increased in May 2024 after the mayor reopened the budget as $3.2 million more in spending was approved to support the Strengthen the Core—Downtown Windsor Revitalization plan.
The additional spending increased the final tax rate by 0.70 percent to 4.61 percent.
Dilkens, members of city council and city staff are holding a news conference this morning at 10:30 to provide a budget update for 2025.