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The City of Kitchener has approved its 2022 budget, authorizing the lowest tax rate increase among municipalities in the region while moving forward with investments in affordable housing and other shared community priorities. The approved tax rate increase of 1.99 per cent translates to an increase of $23 a year for the average homeowner.  

Throughout the City’s budget process, the mayor and council consistently identified housing affordability as a major issue facing Kitchener residents. The City’s Housing for All strategy identifies seven priority areas to increase housing options across the entire housing continuum using tools available to local municipalities, and the 2022 budget includes a $2 million capital investment to create an affordable housing reserve fund that will offset the costs incurred through the development of  affordable and supportive housing projects in the community.  

“I am very pleased with the budget approved by Council as it reflects the community priorities that matter most to Kitchener residents,” said Kitchener Mayor Berry Vrbanovic. “We’ve heard and seen that housing affordability has become the most urgent of those priorities, and we’re committed to work collaboratively with partners and taking any action available to us by funding the actions outlined in our Housing for All strategy. These housing dollars will allow us to support various investments initiatives including the offset of development charges normally incurred by new housing projects. As a local municipality, covering development charges is one of the best ways we can encourage and support affordable housing projects in Kitchener.” 

In addition to funding the City’s affordable housing actions, council also chose to move forward and provide increased capital investments to upgrade city facilities and trails. A number of capital projects were paused in 2021 due to the financial uncertainty surrounding the pandemic but are being reinitiated in 2022. The additional investment in city facilities and trails will ensure these community assets are kept in good repair and available for the public’s use. 

“At the end of today’s budget, Finance and Administration Committee Chair Councillor Scott Davey also announced he would not be standing as Chair of the Committee for 2022, after shepherding the City through 11 successive budgets,” added Mayor Vrbanovic. “I would like to publicly thank Councillor Davey for his many years of leadership in this important role, and for helping lead Council through successive budgets that have been kept at or below the rate of inflation, made significant progress in reducing our city debt levels and most importantly allowed Council to invest in many strategic initiatives that have added to the quality of life for Kitchener residents.” 

The approved increases and impact on the average home are:  

  • A property tax increase of 1.99 per cent ($23 per year) 
  • A water utility increase of 2.2 per cent ($26 per year) 
  • A gas increase of 10.4 per cent ($74 per year) 

For more information about the 2022 budget, visit www.kitchener.ca/budget.    
  

For more information, contact:  

Shawn Falcao   
Manager, Corporate Communication   
City of Kitchener  
shawn.falcao@kitchener.ca