The continuation of the Equity for Ottawa campaign launched last August as well as finding ways to allow cities to diversify their sources of revenue are on the menu of Mayor Sutcliffe’s efforts in the next twelve months, he said. know during an end-of-year interview given to the Right.
“I will work hard to ensure that Ottawa receives its fair share of investments from the federal government and the provincial government,” he indicated as he will continue his discussions with elected officials and stakeholders from both levels of government to that his city obtain money for the development of public transit, in the same way as cities in the Toronto region, and that the federal government pays all property taxes for its properties in the city.
The City draws its revenue mainly from property taxes paid by citizens and businesses. There are user fees and fines that are also collected, but these are used to fund the services for which the money comes, such as recreation and road safety.
Sustainable financing
If there are federal and Ontario elections in 2025, Mr. Sutcliffe hopes that part of the conversations will focus on municipal finances.
Mark Sutcliffe intends to continue discussions with Prime Minister Doug Ford in 2025 so that Ottawa has its fair share of public transit spending. (Etienne Ranger/Archives Le Droit)
“We have often heard the idea of having a percentage of the harmonized sales tax dedicated to municipalities. It’s an idea, but it’s not the only one,” he stressed.
“The important thing for me is to have a sustainable financing system,” he said. One of the first responsibilities for a mayor is to ask other levels of government for help. This is not ideal. It’s better if we have the funds in our own system with sustainable resources.
Mark Sutcliffe wanted to remind us that the challenges facing cities are no longer the same as what was imagined at the creation of Confederation in 1867.
“There were no crises like those of opioids, mental health, or newcomers. When the system was created, no one imagined the challenges that cities would face today,” he noted.
Financial pressures motivated Mayor Sutcliffe to promise during his election campaign to find savings in City spending that would not cut into the services offered to citizens. Since 2023, $207.7 million has been saved thanks to service reviews and continuous improvement initiatives.
Homelessness and housing
The issues of homelessness and affordable housing are also among the priorities of the mayor of Ottawa.
“It’s always difficult to find solutions, but I hope that in the near future we can work with real estate developers, with the community, with the team at the City to find solutions to improve the process in order to reduce the time between submitting an application and a decision,” mentioned the mayor, while specifying that many real estate projects which have received the green light from the City have not yet seen the light of day.
Harmony
There are less than two years left before the next municipal elections. Mr. Sutcliffe said he was happy to see that the current city council is much more harmonious than the previous one, something that citizens have observed, he said.
“For example, the 2025 budget was passed by a vote of 22 to three. This is not something we saw in 2020 or 2021. I think there is a spirit of collaboration,” he noted.
“We are in a period where there is a lot of conflict in politics with the United States and Canada, so I hope we can continue to set a good example as a government. It is not always unanimous. There are discussions, debates, but there is a lot of politeness, a lot of collaboration, a lot of respect. I believe a lot in the concept of Team Ottawa,” he continued.
Mark Sutcliffe and the current city council were elected in October 2022. The next vote will take place in fall 2026.
