On Tuesday, Edmonton city council supported a motion to keep mid-block infills to a maximum of eight units, and I’m grateful. In a time when Edmonton nears its debt limits, gentle density through infill development expands our tax base, helping make core services like roads, transit, and libraries more affordable per resident. Read More
On Tuesday, Edmonton city council supported a motion to keep mid-block infills to a maximum of eight units, and I’m grateful. In a time when Edmonton nears its debt limits, gentle density through infill development expands our tax base, helping make core services like roads, transit, and libraries more affordable per resident. Infill development can
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On Tuesday, Edmonton city council supported a motion to keep mid-block infills to a maximum of eight units, and I’m grateful. In a time when Edmonton nears its debt limits, gentle density through infill development expands our tax base, helping make core services like roads, transit, and libraries more affordable per resident.
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Infill development can replace a yearly residential property tax payment of $2,966 for a home worth $389,000 with a yearly “other residential” property tax payment of $24,519 for a $2,950,000 eight-plex. Allowing the city to collect more property taxes from the same lot is the fiscally responsible decision in order to maintain core services.
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Edmonton’s population has increased by over 140,000 people in three years. Greenfield development is traditionally how Edmonton has grown. However, adding core services to communities outside Anthony Henday Drive comes at a hefty cost. Lewis Farms Facility and Park, Edmonton’s first major recreation centre and library outside the Anthony Henday has a $321.3-million budget. In comparison, the Meadows Community Recreation Centre and Library cost $115 million. This shows how expanding into new greenfield developments places a growing burden on the city’s ability to provide core services, ultimately impacting all residents with higher property taxes.
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Another property-tax pressure is maintaining the 12,000 kilometres of roads under the city’s responsibility. In the 2022-2026 budget, $1.8 billion was allocated to maintaining roads and bridges. In contrast, Ottawa has an almost identical population and tax base to Edmonton’s, at around 1.1 million, yet is only responsible for maintaining 6,000 kilometres of roads.
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The result? Ottawa’s 2022 budget allocated $251 million to roads and bridges, $201 million less than Edmonton’s budget for the same period. This disparity highlights how higher population density leads to more efficient use of city infrastructure and resources.
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Additionally, the Alberta Road Builders and Heavy Construction Association president warned city council of the “financial disaster” approaching, due to an inflation-adjusted funding reduction for road infrastructure of 50 per cent.
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Meaning: The staggering $1.8 billion was insufficient for roads existing in 2022. How much more are we going to have to spend on roads if we keep building suburbs for new residents? Greenfield development exacerbates this fiscal time bomb, whereas infill development ensures we have the density in property tax payments necessary for timely road maintenance.
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