The 2024 civic election may be different from any previous election. Normally citizens would be filing their nomination forms and a local paper would be publishing their profiles for public consumption. As I write this, I have seen nothing in the local newspaper about any council or school board candidates, although I have already received a brochure from a candidate in my ward. And outside of Cynthia Block, Gord Wyant and Cary Tarasoff, there has been no one else announcing their candidacy for the mayoralty race. If this keeps up, voters will be casting their ballots on name recognition, political party affiliation or on the “Eenie, Meenie, Miney, Moe” system.

Worse yet, they may not bother to vote. Perhaps the City should create a separate election platform on its website for candidates to announce their intentions, their backgrounds and their positions on civic matters. We should expect candidates to state their position on increasing property taxes. Since 2020, property taxes have risen at least 20.56 per cent. If that isn’t bad enough, waste management that used to be covered by property tax is now off loaded to a separate utility and based on my last bill it amounts $23.66/month which, in essence, increases my annual property tax bill by $283.66. (I will be reducing this by going to the smallest black bin I can get.) Should we assume all the underground water and sewer infrastructure is paid for by the “infrastructure charge” we pay monthly on our water and sewer bill? And the cost of dry ponds surely is covered by the monthly “storm water management charge” levied on the water bill. Monthly I pay SaskEnergy a “Municipal Surcharge City of Saskatoon” which amount varies monthly as it is a percentage of consumption, and I have no idea what that money is used for.

It is imperative that candidates state their positions on pending capital projects. The library project is already in deep dodo and the shovel has barely hit the ground. There is the want to build a new downtown arena and convention centre. And if they are built, then there is need for multi million dollar parkades and the costs of roadway, surface and underground infrastructure. We are told all of this will revitalize downtown and supposedly will stimulate the local economy. Having said that the restaurants and bars will be delighted but the police budget will need to increase to manage the drunks celebrating whatever event is at the arena/convention centre. Of course, all of this is premised on the “if you build it, they will come.” (I’m still waiting for the hoards of New Yorkers and world tourists to flock to our Art Gallery and to stimulate our local economy.) I would be remiss if I didn’t mention City transit and its $250 million Link project, the City’s share being 63 million in local tax dollars. (This may be another project were we will never know the final cost.) However, the new transit plan has given birth to a very untenable situation. It is the intrusion by the federal government into the operations of municipal governments. Prime Minister Trudeau hasn’t done much during his tenure to garner praise from the public. Even the $10/day daycare was marred through a rushed and poorly managed implementation plan.

Considering Trudeau’s track record, why would any civic government want to sign on to his Housing Accelerator Fund (HAF) project when the cost of doing means a city forfeiting its existing zoning and altering planning in long established neighbourhoods. I doubt the city is going to see a whopping cheque for $41 million. Likely, it will be dribbled out in insignificant amounts, with the city interim financing the project and waiting be reimbursed. The councillors who voted to give away civic zoning to keep from being barred from participating in any other federal capital infrastructure projects should remember that it seems highly unlikely that Trudeau will be around a year from now to pay for this program much less any other capital projects. And as federal money is in such short supply, I doubt that a new government is likely to seek retribution against cities that stood up to bullyism. We best be sure that we vote in councillors with strength to fend off bullyism because Trudeau has a “home equity tax” on his radar screen and property evaluations are key to this program. He is musing with the idea of introducing an annual surtax on homes valued at a $1 million or more. It is themed “generational fairness” whereby older Canadians should share their home equity wealth with younger Canadians. (I thought income tax was the tool to share the wealth.) But this is another greedy scheme not thought through because in large cities, like Toronto, a modest starter home being bought by younger generations will start with a $1 million price tag.

As well young families who bought a home a decade ago and are struggling with overall increased cost-of-living, may have seen their property values increased and they be stuck with the same surtax. We shouldn’t presume that the older generation has wealth just because inflation has, over the decades, increased their home values. Seniors still must support their homes, pay ever-increasing property taxes, utilities, and food costs while living on a fixed income. If they sell their home, they need the money for a new residence and increased living expenses that may come with old age. But tax the rich has always been a successful political strategy. Trudeau’s next brainstorm may be put the seniors on an ice floe to save on health care. I don’t have a problem with paying taxes to governments. But I do have a problem with governments wasting tax dollars. There are amenities that our city needs but there is a limit to what people can afford to pay at any given time. We cannot afford to do everything at once so priorities have to be set, and the top priority should be maintaining the existing infrastructure that we all use daily. Vote and vote wisely.

– Elaine Hnatyshyn