That with respect to Report C2024-1097, the following amendment be adopted: ; That Recommendation 1.b be amended as follows: Inserting the words , subject to the following change: after the words Capital Budget Adjustments; and Inserting the following sub-bullet under Recommendation 1.b: ; Allocating $7,500,000 in capital budget in 2025 and $7,500,000 in capital budget in 2026 to Recreation Opportunities- Budget ID A446551 towards identified and presently unfunded recreation projects that require initiation, repair and/or maintenance, to be funded from Fiscal Stability Reserve (FSR) which is scheduled to receive an estimated $38 million favourable year-end variance. ;
Motion C2024-1097 bundles three council directions: 1) re-create a Finance and Budget Committee to do detailed reviews of operating budgets and oversee service planning each four-year term, 2) reverse the 2023 transit fare freeze so fare changes can resume and move $3,000,000 into the Primary Transit Network, and 3) ask the provincial government to waive Section 358.1 of the Municipal Government Act to avoid shifting tax burden between residential and non‑residential property classes.
These steps increase council oversight of how money and services are planned, could restart changes to transit fares while directing new funds to transit network improvements, and seek temporary provincial relief to prevent tax-class shifts while assessment values rebalance.