Posted May 7, 2026. Kingston city leaders have moved to formally investigate a range of strategies aimed at keeping municipal finances sustainable as costs rise. In a unanimous vote on Tuesday night, council directed staff to prepare detailed analysis of options that could help close potential long-term budget shortfalls. The motion asks for a review of both revenue-side solutions and internal changes to how services are delivered, signaling an early push to understand fiscal choices well before pressures are expected to bite.
The package of measures under study includes exploring new revenue tools, expanding cost recovery efforts and assessing the viability of alternative delivery models such as municipal services corporations. Staff will be asked to scope potential implications, risks and benefits and to return with recommendations. This is intended as a forward-looking exercise to map scenarios over the next decade, not as an immediate change to daily operations.
Why council is planning ahead
City officials say the exercise reflects broader trends across Ontario municipalities that are facing rising expenses and shifting responsibilities. The city treasurer, Desiree Kennedy, told council the pressures Kingston is preparing for are not unique, but rather echo challenges seen province-wide. She emphasized the need to model how costs could evolve over a 10–15 year horizon and to identify tools the city might deploy to reduce vulnerability. In short, the goal is to avoid reactive decisions later by building a menu of options now.
Options being examined
Council asked staff to look at three broad types of responses: new revenue mechanisms, strengthened cost recovery measures, and restructured service delivery. Under new revenue tools, the review will consider fees, charges and other municipal authorities that could generate incremental income while balancing fairness and competitive impacts. For cost recovery, analysts will examine where the city can better align fees with service costs so that users, rather than general taxpayers, cover an appropriate share.
Exploring municipal services corporations
One of the more structural ideas on the table is the creation of municipal services corporations to manage functions such as water and wastewater or other non-core activities. These entities would operate at arm’s length from council while remaining publicly owned, potentially providing more business-like governance and clearer cost accounting. Staff will be asked to outline how such corporations could affect service quality, regulatory compliance and long-term capital planning.
Asset management and property options
Mayor Bryan Paterson highlighted another strand of the review focused on the city’s physical assets. Council wants to know whether all municipal buildings and properties are still required and whether repurposing or divesting some assets could free funds or reduce operating costs. Paterson framed this as an efficiency and strategic-use question: making sure the city’s holdings serve current needs and that properties are not draining resources that could be better deployed elsewhere.
Drivers of rising costs and fiscal pressure
Officials pointed out that municipal budgets are absorbing an increasing share of responsibilities once funded at the provincial level. Examples include efforts to support health-care access, such as family physician recruitment, and investments in programs addressing mental health and addiction. These service areas are creating sustained cost pressure that, if unchecked, will push demands on the municipal bottom line higher in coming years.
Timeline and commitments
Council asked staff to return with a report and recommendations within the next six months. Throughout the discussion, elected officials stressed a desire to protect residents from undue tax increases. Mayor Paterson reiterated his pledge to keep Kingston’s property tax increases among the lowest of large Ontario cities, noting the importance of limiting the burden on households while still planning responsibly for future obligations.
As staff build analyses, council will weigh trade-offs between preserving services, adjusting user fees, restructuring delivery and using asset strategies. The review is designed to give decision-makers evidence-based choices rather than leaving them to react to budgetary shocks when they arrive.
