Dedicated listeners to Burlington council meetings will often hear our mayor talk about the “Municipal Growth Framework.” The Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) is taking an active role in promoting this new framework, and Burlington’s own, Rory Nisan, was recently re-elected to the FCM Board of Directors. This quote is from FCM’s website: “FCM is … Continue reading Is there only one taxpayer?
Opinion: Murky Waters surround Burlington Pools
This post discusses two RFPs RFP-25-202 and RFP-25-203. Copies of the RFP documents are linked at the bottom of this article for anyone interested in reading the them. In Burlington, the right to rent swimming pools is precious. Request for Proposals (RFPs) are typically used when the city is purchasing something. When the city needs … Continue reading Opinion: Murky Waters surround Burlington Pools
Opinion – Engagement and Transparency – Burlington’s 2026 Budget Process.
Burlington is a great place to live, but like many other communities, there are pressures and changes taking place. Balancing the needs of the community with taxpayers' ability to pay for those needs is the definition of politics. For those of us at Focus Burlington, the budget review process is not about cutting everything. We … Continue reading Opinion – Engagement and Transparency – Burlington’s 2026 Budget Process.
Opinion: From Pool Rental to Lawsuit?
When it comes to competitive swimming, Burlington swimmers have 2 outdoor and 4 indoor pools to choose from. The city’s recent and controversial decision to award an “RFP” to the Golden Horseshoe Aquatics Club (GHAC) over the Burlington Aquatic Devilrays (BAD) requires a closer look. First, the term “RFP” stands for Request For Proposal. This … Continue reading Opinion: From Pool Rental to Lawsuit?
Opinion: Here we go again. The City of Burlington plans to increase spending by 5.8% in the 2026 Budget
Keep 5.8% in mind. This is how the city is positioning the increase “Burlington’s portion of the overall increase would be 2.98%”. Let's call this Burlington Speak math or BS math (for short). Spending is increasing 5.8% but the “overall increase” is 2.98%, exactly how does BS math work? Well, if you assume that the … Continue reading Opinion: Here we go again. The City of Burlington plans to increase spending by 5.8% in the 2026 Budget
Burlington’s Ward Boundary Review
In Ontario, municipalities are required to conduct ward boundary reviews. Reviews are undertaken every 12 to 16 years. In Burlington, a review was conducted in 2005 when the city's population was approximately 139,000. Recently, our council completed a new review, resulting in new ward boundaries for Burlington. Burlington has the smallest number of councillors in Halton … Continue reading Burlington’s Ward Boundary Review
Burlington’s Ward Boundary and Council Composition Review Process Time Line
In Ontario, municipalities are required to conduct ward boundary reviews. Burlington recently completed a review to learn more about the review - Click Here We now know that taxpayers paid for a full review of council composition and received small revisions to the ward boundaries. Here’s a brief timeline of the project. March 2024 – … Continue reading Burlington’s Ward Boundary and Council Composition Review Process Time Line
Why are property taxes in Burlington so complicated?
Let’s start with the bill from the city. The tax bill has four components, each managed by a separate level of government or board. Code on the tax billMeaningResponsibilityM-MunicipalCity of BurlingtonMayor and councilR-RegionHalton RegionRegional Chair and councilP-PoliceHalton Police ServicesHalton Police BoardE-EdBoard of EducationProvince of Ontario Getting four bills would make everyone’s life more complicated and … Continue reading Why are property taxes in Burlington so complicated?
Is Burlington’s Tax Bill Legal?
This article was updated on May 12, 2025: Burlington has added a section titled "Schedule 2" to the back of the tax bill. Schedule 2 shows total taxes for last year, this year and the difference. The tax bill now complies with the requirements in the Ontario Municipal Act. Here is the original article from … Continue reading Is Burlington’s Tax Bill Legal?
Hamilton Councillors Revolt over 2025 Budget Process
The Bay Observer recently published two articles on the budget process in Hamilton: Five Hamilton Councillors in revolt over 2025 Budget Process Budget process in Hamilton put flaws in strong mayor legislation out for all to see The Bay Observer's Take on Strong Mayor Powers "When Doug Ford introduced the strong mayor powers he said … Continue reading Hamilton Councillors Revolt over 2025 Budget Process