Park and airport upgrades approved in carryover budget

Kelowna council has given the green light to carry over $177 million in projects that didn’t get completed last year, or are multi-year projects.

They include the development of Pandosy Waterfront Park, continued upgrades to Kelowna International Airport, Journey Home Strategy initiatives to address homelessness and the Mill Creek flood protection project.

“Budget carry over projects do not add to the current year’s taxation demand, as they are funded through the previous year’s council-approved budget,” said Kevin Hughes, financial planning manager. “Approximately half of the projects (49 per cent) will be funded through the city’s general fund sources and the remaining (51 per cent) will come from self-funding sources such as the water utility, wastewater utility and the Airport reserve funds.”

There are three stages of the city’s annual budget process: preliminary budget in December, carryovers in March and the final budget that will be presented on April 25, 2022. At that time, council will consider the final budget for adoption, setting the final taxation demand increase.

Following budget discussions in December, council approved a preliminary overall taxation increase of 3.64 per cent. On average, this means an $80 increase on a City of Kelowna residential property tax bill.

(Image credit: City of Kelowna)

For more information about the City of Kelowna’s budget and to view the 2022 Financial Plan, visit kelowna.ca/budget.