There City of Montreal has therefore revealed its budget leading to an average increase of 4.9% in municipal tax bills.
It is true that everything costs more and cities are not immune to inflation: snow removal, order collection, repair work, infrastructure, etc. We therefore expect the bill to be higher for the city and therefore, de facto, for taxpayers.
Political choices
But there are still costly political choices being made. Ideological choices. In the 2023-2033 infrastructure program, we plan to inject $580 million for cycling. Yes yes, half a billion dollars in particular to increase the famous urban highway of cycle paths and to increase the Bixi supply.
In absolute terms, these are laudable ideas, but are they a priority? The same infrastructure program provides a little over $550 million for the acquisition of land for the construction of affordable housing. Roughly speaking, we are told that cycling is as important as housing in the eyes of the city.
Sobriety
The Plante administration is therefore asking us to tighten our belts, because times are tough. We are presented with a budget that they present as sober. However, sobriety is not the payment of a second unexpected bonus to city executives totaling $6 million. Sobriety is not about hiring 400 new employees, as if we didn’t have enough. Sobriety does not mean spending $90 million to close Camilien-Houde Road to motorists when the largest consultation from the famous Montreal public consultation office concluded the opposite. Sobriety is not about extending the paid parking periods in Montreal, we are led to believe that it is to energize commercial arteries.
The Plante administration is asking us to tighten our belts so that the elected and non-elected can loosen theirs. Montrealers pay a lot and when they look out the window, they don’t feel like they’re getting their money’s worth. This budget could allow them to take a bridge to one or the other bank. This is urban sprawl.