The Town of Gananoque has released its 2025 Draft Budget, which includes a proposed 12% property tax increase. The budget reflects efforts to address long-standing shortfalls in capital reserves and comply with new provincial regulations.
Mayor John Beddows acknowledged the challenges, citing historical underfunding of capital reserves, which had averaged just 50% of required contributions until 2022. Recent efforts have raised this to about 76%, but further progress is needed. “We are catching up on deferred work, and costs have risen over time,” Beddows said.
The budget also accounts for mandatory expenses imposed by the province, including compliance with the Community Safety and Policing Act and storm sewer assessments. The Town’s Asset Management Plan (AMP) highlights the gap between reserve contributions and asset replacement needs, as well as the need to map and evaluate the storm sewer system.
Residents can provide input during budget deliberations at Town Hall on December 5 at 9 a.m. Public comments will be limited to two minutes per speaker.
(By: Tim Baltz)
