Infrastructure, emergencies and inflation shape Brock’s 2026 municipal budget

DARRYL KNIGHT Local Journalism Initiative Reporter for The Standard

BROCK: The 2026 Operating and Capital Budget for the Township of Brock was adopted, following a formal presentation on Monday, November 24th, and Council deliberations on Wednesday, November 26th. In accordance with provincial legislation, under the Strong Mayor Powers framework, the budget was deemed adopted at the conclusion of the November 26th meeting.

The 2026 budget encompasses: a 2 percent increase, dedicated to legislated asset management funding; along with a 1.79 percent rise to the operating budget, to address inflationary and service-level pressures. Combined, these represent a 3.79 percent levy change, equivalent to about a 1.4 percent increase in the overall municipal tax bill. For a home assessed at $300,000, the Township’s portion of the tax bill will rise by approximately $59.56.

The full budget totals $21,632,070, made up of an operating budget of $16,694,281 and a capital budget of $4,940,083. The levy requirement from taxpayers is $11,659,808, representing 53.9 percent of total expenditures and roughly 70 percent of operating costs.

Mayor Mike Jubb said, this year’s process was different, under provincially mandated Strong Mayor Powers. “As part of the new provincially legislated Strong Mayor Powers, the budget is mandated to the mayor. Of course, I have been clear, I will not be using Strong Mayor Powers and this will be a council budget,” he said. “I did delegate back to staff, to create the budget and report back to me, and this initiated deep and thorough discussions with staff, the CAO, department heads, and council.”

The mayor noted, staff initially presented a levy increase of 5.31 percent. “I fully understand, this was very difficult during our continued tough budget years. Internal discussions began at over 8 percent, so I appreciate and thank staff for the pre-work on this budget,” he said.

Mayor Jubb pointed to the financial strain, brought on by a challenging year of extreme weather. “From January to March, Brock experienced unprecedented snowfall,” he said. “Next was a significant thaw, and last, the historic Ice Storm. With this State of Emergency, Brock experienced unbudgeted costs of close to $700,000.” The Township has applied for provincial emergency funding, but reimbursement is not guaranteed. Even with approval, Brock expects to still absorb roughly $90,000 in storm-related costs. Despite these challenges, the levy increase was lowered, after further analysis and discussion. “After in-depth discussions and some very creative strategies, we have been able to lower the levy increase. These numbers result in an overall tax levy increase of 1.40 percent [in] Brock’s portion of the tax bill,” Mayor Jubb said. “To deliver this fair and moderate levy increase, we have drawn substantially from our reserves.”

Capital spending, in 2026, totals $4,940,083, with the largest share, $3,288,283, or 67 percent, allocated to roads, bridges and fleet replacement. Other capital investments cover parks, recreation, facilities, IT needs, and Fire and Emergency Services. Projects include nearly $900,000: for maintenance and construction gravel; continued implementation of the Brock Roads Rehabilitation Master Plan; bridge and culvert work, including the MacLeod Park Pedestrian Bridge; playground improvements; funding for the 2026 dog park; new washrooms, at the Beaverton waterfront; physician recruitment initiatives; sidewalk replacements, in Cannington and Sunderland; reserve contributions, for MacLeod Park and the Beaverton Harbour; ice storm debris cleanup, at Fox Park; design work, for McHattie Park; expanded salt program funding; new public works trucks; generators for fire stations; new fire service equipment and personal protective equipment; and funding for future works, at Thorah Island Harbour.

“This budget maintains all services for the municipality, and exceeds many,” Mayor Jubb explained. “In addition, this budget does not include any new staff hires.”

Council also made several amendments to the mayor’s draft budget. These included: maintaining the 2026 Library budget, at 2025 levels; shifting snow maintenance, at Manilla Hall, and sidewalk inspections, to municipal staff rather than contractors; removing $5,000, for a Mayor’s Networking Event; and adding $9,500 to reserves, for an additional auto extrication tool, alongside an $8,000 donation, from the Beaverton Firefighter’s Association.

Public input, through the annual budget survey, played a significant role in shaping the final document. Roads and related infrastructure were identified as the community’s top priority. “The public was clear. The main priority for 2026 is our roads. So this is exactly what is proposed: historic investments in roads and related infrastructure,” added Mayor Jubb. “This was a very difficult budget to draft, due to numerous pressures. I want to thank staff and council, for all their input, which has led to many additions to this budget.”