City of Saskatoon 2025 Budget: Record Investments in Core Services for a Growing City
City of Saskatoon 2025 Budget: Record Investments in Core Services for a Growing City
The City of Saskatoon’s 2025 Budget continues record investments in core services like road maintenance, snow and ice management, public transit, and policing to meet the demands of a rapidly growing population.
Saskatoon is experiencing its fastest growth in over a century, adding more than 26,000 residents in just two years, and reaching an estimated population of 308,000 in 2024. This rapid growth, coupled with a strong labor market and one of Canada’s lowest unemployment rates, has driven unprecedented demand for City services.
At the same time, rising costs for service contracts, construction, materials, and supplies have placed significant pressure on service delivery. The 2025 Budget tackles these challenges by responsibly investing in the core services that ensure the safety, mobility, and quality of life for all Saskatoon residents.
Against that backdrop, starting December 2, 2024, the new Saskatoon City Council will review adjustments to the 2025 Budget, ensuring investments align with community needs. The 2025 Budget builds on the City’s commitment to transparency and fiscal responsibility, providing residents with enhanced services in transportation, public safety, and community support.
"City Council will have the opportunity to refine and adjust the proposed 2025 budget to address emerging priorities," says Kari Smith, Director of Finance. "This ensures we remain flexible and responsive to the needs of our growing city."
Supporting Core Services with more Strategic Investments
The City’s 2025 Budget prioritizes investments in essential services to improve quality of life and maintain infrastructure, with a focus on transportation, police, and fire services. Overall, tax supported operating expenditures are expected to rise by about 6% in 2025 (or $35 million including adjustments), with about two-thirds of this incremental investment a commitment to addressing core needs of transportation, public safety, and community support (check 2025 Preliminary Budget Breakdown - Backgrounder for details, and Administrative Report 2025 Preliminary Corporate Business Plan and Budget Summary.)
Addressing Community Priorities in an Affordable and Fiscally Sustainable Way
To pay for these core investments, the City uses several non-tax revenue sources, including user fees, investment income, and government transfers, to name a few. Unfortunately, these are not always enough to pay for our community’s priorities.
Thus, the adjusted 2025 Budget proposes a 5.84% property tax increase to maintain service levels, fund strategic initiatives, and importantly, to help the City balance the operating budget, which it must do by law. Despite the proposed property tax increase, the City of Saskatoon has among the lowest property tax levels for both residential and non-residential properties in Canada.
The City’s 2024-25 Business Plan and Budget invests in the areas that matter most to the people of Saskatoon – transportation, public safety, and community support.” In particular, the 2025 Budget builds on the fiscal plan set out by City Council almost two years ago. It delivers record funding into essential projects, services, and programs that reflect the City’s ongoing efforts to balance fiscal sustainability with community priorities.
City Council will deliberate the 2025 Budget starting December 2, 2024.