Why are Burlington Taxpayers being hit with a $3.8 million tax increase for Alton West? During the September 18th, 2025, Ward 6 budget town hall, the mayor stated that one of the pressures on this year's budget is “maintenance services for the Alton West neighbourhood, which is being built as we speak." This map shows … Continue reading Alton West and $3.8 Million dollars
Opinion – Food For Feedback
Please complete the Focus Burlington Budget survey linked at the bottom of this post. The annual, City of Burlington, Food for Feedback event is back. Visit Central Park on September 13th, 2025 from 12 – 4 p.m. to participate. Through a Freedom of Information request, we learned that the city paid $47,657.37 for food at … Continue reading Opinion – Food For Feedback
Opinion – Is respect a two-way street?
Every year in August, the City of Burlington mails us a copy of the “City Talk” magazine. The magazine contains sixteen pages of “News from your municipal government”. Page 14 shows us the “Budget Projections as of July 15, 2025”. This paragraph accompanies the chart. When I read this statement, I walk away thinking that … Continue reading Opinion – Is respect a two-way street?
Community Gardens in Burlington
Gardening has been shown to improve the mental health and wellness of gardeners. Many Burlington residents, especially those in high-rise buildings, don't have access to a garden. The City of Burlington manages 231 community garden plots. Eight plots are assigned to food security organizations, leaving 223 for residents. Each plot rents for $65 (plus tax) … Continue reading Community Gardens in Burlington
What is the Federation of Canadian Municipalities?
Many municipalities across Canada contribute to the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM), including Burlington and Hamilton. Our estimates indicate that Burlington contributed $41,416 in 2024. What services does FCM provide? Each member municipality pays an annual fee composed of a base fee and a per-person fee, based on Statistics Canada's population estimates.[1] Across Canada, municipalities … Continue reading What is the Federation of Canadian Municipalities?
Are property tax increases also rent increases?
In Ontario, rent controls are applied to buildings occupied before November 15, 2018. Ontario has capped rental increases at 2.1% for 2026. The cap is based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI), a common measure of inflation. If the inflation rate is above 2.5% rent increases are capped at 2.5%. If a landlord requires an … Continue reading Are property tax increases also rent increases?
Opinion – CUT THE FLUFF !!
$35,000 a year to provide homeowners with funds to host neighbourhood parties through something called the “Love Your Neighbourhood” initiative. A now-shuttered program for $170,000 in loans to provide homeowners with loans to install heat pumps. Thousands of dollars spent by civic officials to provide participants with food vouchers as part of the “Food for … Continue reading Opinion – CUT THE FLUFF !!
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: 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
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?