Tough budget year ahead for HRM
HALIFAX: Mayor Andy Fillmore says Halifax Regional Municipality is facing one of its toughest budget years in decades, with staff and council working to reduce a projected 10.9 per cent average tax increase.
Fillmore said he has asked staff to clearly separate core municipal services from “nice-to-have” programs, focus on a “fix-it-first” approach to maintaining existing assets, and scale back costly design elements on new projects.
He said the goal is to continue delivering essential services while easing pressure on taxpayers.
Suburban development waiting on planning framework
BEAVER BANK/FALL RIVER: Mayor Andy Fillmore says development in communities like Fall River, Beaver Bank and Sackville often lags behind urban areas because suburban secondary planning has not yet been completed.
He explained that while the municipality’s Regional Plan guides growth across HRM, action depends on detailed secondary plans.
The Suburban Plan, now under development, is expected to put suburban growth areas on equal footing with the urban core, with significant progress anticipated in 2026.
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Affordability, housing, and transit top resident concerns
FALL RIVER: Affordability remains the top concern residents raise with Mayor Andy Fillmore, driven by rising taxes, water rates, power costs, inflation and interest rates.
Housing supply, congestion and transit mobility also continue to rank high.
Fillmore said Halifax Water has emerged as a growing pressure point, with infrastructure struggles affecting housing construction, economic development and public safety.
City looking to diversify revenue, speed up housing approvals
LOWER SACKVILLE: Fillmore says HRM must reduce its reliance on property taxes, which currently fund about 82 per cent of the municipality’s operating budget, significantly higher than most Canadian cities.
He said the municipality is exploring diversified revenue streams, stronger partnerships with other levels of government, public-private partnerships, faster housing approvals and access to lower-cost land.
On transit, he highlighted progress toward bus rapid transit and ongoing discussions with the Canada Infrastructure Bank.
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$3.6M stormwater project to improve Highway 2 reliability
FALL RIVER: A $3.6-million stormwater project along Highway 2 is expected to significantly reduce flooding caused by heavy rainfall, according to Mayor Andy Fillmore.
The project is jointly funded by the federal government and HRM, with Ottawa contributing $1.5 million through the Disaster Mitigation and Adaptation Fund and the municipality providing $2.2 million.
Fillmore said the investment will improve reliability for residents, buses and commercial traffic while delivering long-term cost savings through climate-resilient infrastructure.
He was asked about if the work this is to do isn’t already being done through the ditch tax.
“In the grand scheme of things, of course, we’re all taxpayers,” he said. “And this is a government funded project.
“So, yes, whether it was directly from the ditch tax, that’s a level of detail I don’t have.”
Strategic plan guides municipal priorities
BEAVER BANK: Mayor Andy Fillmore says HRM’s newly released strategic plan is a rolling document that guides the work of municipal departments in support of council priorities.
While much of the plan builds on work from previous councils, he said the current council made adjustments following the election and will increasingly shape the document over time.
The plan aligns municipal operations with broader frameworks such as the Regional Plan and Integrated Mobility Plan.