City of Owen Sound 2025 Budget: By the Numbers
Explore the City's operating budget and expenses, revenue streams, departmental and service line expenses, 2025 tax levy impact and more.
Our coverage of the City of Owen Sound’s 2025 budget process continues with a closer look at the key facts and figures shared in budget presentation meetings on December 9 and 10.
This is not an exhaustive list; please see the agenda and draft budget presentation for more.
Operating Budget and Expenses
$36,691,443: the City of Owen Sound’s total budget for 2025, $3.5 million higher than in 2023 and up $1.4 million over last year
+12.6% year-over-year increase in the City’s total expenses, to $48.5 million
$477,122: operating budget increase for 2025, a 2.06% increase
90% of the City of Owen Sound’s legal fees are due to fire arbitration
City Revenue
+$63,800: the increase in Ontario Municipal Partnership Fund (OMPF) funding to the City of Owen Sound, to $2,133,800
$300,500: the amount of revenue general by the Municipal Accommodation Tax, of which:
50% goes to the Chamber of Commerce, the City’s program partner
$9,000 is paid to the organization that collects the tax
Of the remaining proceeds, $35,000 goes to capital projects, $30,000 to the Tom Thomson Art Gallery, $70,000 to the City’s tourism department (now led by the gallery), and $6,000 goes to the Harrison Park Campground.
$12,500: the amount of revenue generated by the City’s Short-Term Rentals licensing program
Tax Levy
+ 2.65% increase in the tax levy, amounting to $113.03 per year more on the average household tax bill
$36,275,463: the City of Owen Sound’s proposed net tax levy for 2025
$3,246,479: the Capital Levy, which is guided by the City’s Capital Budget Policy and calls for 1% of the prior year’s total levy to be allocated to capital charges
See more budget coverage:
Salaries & Benefits
$31.2 million budgeted for employee salaries in 2025, accounting for 65% of total expenditures
+5.4% increase in City salaries and benefits for 2025 following an 8.1% increase last year and 3.3% increase in 2023
62% of the City’s budget goes to police, fire, and transportation (45% to police and fire alone)
In 2024, the City of Owen Sound employed:
151 full-time equivalent staff
12 part-time employees
25 seasonal employees
14 summer students
Departmental & Service Line Expenses
Each figure reflects the 2025 draft budget increase in tax levy funding compared to 2024, with further comparisons to 2022 figures:
+5.4% increase for police services to $9.9 million, where expenses have increased 28.6% from $11,491,270 in 2022 to a projected $14,780,790 for 2025.
+2.9% increase for fire services to $6 million, and here expenses have risen 9.6% from $5,530,377 in 2022 to a projected $6,061,133 for 2025.
+1.2% increase for transit to $1.3 million; at a projected $1,947,108, expenses remain 0.6% lower than in 2022 after shedding a few hundred thousand dollars from 2022 to 2023.
+4.1 increase for the library to $1.1 million, with expenses up 11.1% from $1,020,222 in 2022 to a projected $1,133,962 for 2025.
+1.8% increase for the gallery, where expenses have grown 2.2% from $783,323 in 2022 to a projected $800,885 for 2025.
+11% for Community Services to $4.7 million, where expenses have grown 18.2% from $5,876,679 in 2022 to $6,946,196 for 2025.
+0.27% for Corporate Services to $3.3 million, though expenses have risen $2,212,353 in 2022 to $3,533,041 for 2025, an increase of 59.7%.
-7.3% for Governance including Director and Clerk salaries which fell to $1.26 million; there seems to have been some reallocation of expenses or categorization of some roles as total expenses are down substantially from 2022’s $3 million to $1.5 million for next year.
Council Expenses
$382,026: the gross cost of Council projected for 2025, up slightly from $379,786 in 2024
$16,000: Council’s professional development budget
$15,000: Council’s meeting expenses
Tax Levy Impact Change by Division
The following figures reflect the increase in impact on the 2025 tax levy of each item, as compared to its own impact in 2024. This is not a complete list; see the 2025 Draft Budget - Tally Sheet for more.
+34.2% City Manager & Strategic Initiatives
+29.5% Animal Control
+19.7% Planning
+16.3% Parks & Open Spaces
+15.3% Operations Director
+15% Works Maintenance
+13.9% Cemetery
+13.3% River District
+10.8% Human Resources
+10.8% Waste Management
+8% City Hall
+6.2% Bayshore
+7.4% Information Technology
+2.9% Bylaw
+2.8% Mayor & Council
0 - no allocation to Climate Change Initiatives
-4.8% Works Administration
-5.6% Winter Control
-19.9% Parking
-20% Purchasing
-24.3% Tourism
-34.7% Court Security
The City of Owen Sound will hold its Public Budget Meeting on January 27, 2025. The final Budget Review takes place on February 10, 2025.
We’ve done our best to ensure the accuracy of the above information and encourage readers to explore the resources below. If you spot an error in the above, please email owensoundcurrenteditor@gmail.com to request a correction.
Resources: