There will be no promises of zero-means-zero or even to cap tax increases at 2.5 per cent from Clive Doucet.
“Those arbitrary numbers have caused a great deal of trouble at council,” said Doucet. “This old way of thinking will deliver the same budget woes and the same rise in city taxes.”
Rather than continue to have budget debates for days over wading pool or library closures, Doucet said budgets will be governed by the city’s capacity to pay, keeping taxes in line with the cost of living and a value return on expenditures.
Doucet would also establish an inter-municipal relations branch to lobby the federal and provincial government on property tax reform, and develop economic partnerships, like intercity rail, with other cities.
The branch would cost up to $300,000, but could potentially generate much more, said Doucet.
The Downtown Ottawa Transit Tunnel is literally throwing money into a hole in the ground, said Doucet.
