Edmonton city council tries to balance cost of living and cost of services

Edmontonians will end up paying more in property taxes in 2025, but city council is still working out how much more.

Two years ago, the tax increase for 2025 was forecasted to be five per cent. Last fall, it was estimated to be seven per cent and then, in August, it increased to 13 per cent.

• City council, administration wrestle with potential double-digit tax hike for 2025

On Wednesday, city staff said they had trimmed millions of dollars from Edmonton's budget to get the property tax increase down to 8.1 per cent.

"I think we have a path forward, I think we have caught up significantly in underfunding of the core services," said Mayor Amarjeet Sohi.

For the average Edmonton homeowner, an 8.1 per cent increase would mean paying an extra $265 in property taxes next year.

City spending can afford to slow down now that council has bolstered the budgets for transit, snow clearing, police and other areas, according to Sohi.

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For Edmontonians calling for more cuts, Ward sipiwiyiniwak councilor Sarah Hamilton is looking for detailed feedback on which services residents can live without.

"People are concerned about transit, they're concerned about affordability," Hamilton said.

"They're still concerned about climate change and climate resilience, but it's not at the place it was, say seven or eight years ago."

A proposal that will further lower the tax increase while funding economic growth, affordability and core city services, is in the works, Sohi added.

"I feel that we have the room to go further below 8.1 per cent and I'll be working with my colleagues to refine that proposal," Sohi said.

Council is set to meet again in a few weeks and aims to get the increase even lower.