City of North Battleford Mayor Kelli Hawtin (left) is seen during the May 12 regular council meeting at the Don Ross Centre chamber. (Kenneth Cheung/ battlefordsNOW staff)

By Kenneth Cheung

2025 MILL RATES

North Battleford sends 2025 tax notices after approving rate hike, vacancy levy

May 13, 2025 | 12:38 PM

Property tax notices are being sent out this week in North Battleford, where council has approved a 4.27 per cent tax increase for 2025 and implemented a higher levy for vacant commercial properties along key corridors.

The changes follow a reassessment year by the Saskatchewan Assessment Management Agency (SAMA), which saw property values drop city-wide — a trend that bucks the provincial pattern.

“Provincially, values have gone up in residential and commercial sectors — not so much here in the city,” Mayor Kelli Hawtin said after the May 12 regular council meeting at the Don Ross Centre chamber.

Hawtin noted that lower assessment values, combined with the approved tax increase, meant the city had no choice but to raise mill rates to balance its revenues.

“Even if it was hypothetically a 0 per cent tax increase, we would have seen an increase in mill rates because of the issue with property values,” she said.

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The 2025 uniform mill rate has been set at 17.69, up from 17.111 last year. Residential base tax is rising from $856.78 to $893.36. According to city estimates, a typical residential property assessed at $146,400 will see its total annual bill rise to $2,316.51 — an increase of $76.75, or about $6.40 per month.

For commercial properties, the city provided a sample based on a building assessed at $281,350. That property would see its total bill increase by $237.82, or about $19.82 per month, bringing the annual total to $6,507.69.

One of the most notable changes is an adjusted levy on vacant commercial properties along 100th Street, Railway Avenue and nearby service roads — the city’s designated “key commercial corridor.” As of May 1, properties that have gone at least two years without a valid business licence or active water utility account will face a mill rate 2.4 times higher.

“If there’s a vacant building, we try to have a larger mill rate for them to try to go and start either leasing it or putting it up in a good shape, to start a business and get some business going there,” said Director of Finance Margarita Pena.

A map of the key commercial corridor. (City of North Battleford)

Hawtin said the original bylaw, first introduced in 2017, was intended to put financial pressure on absentee owners to either sell or activate their buildings. It was set at three times the standard commercial mill rate, but has been reduced since the provincial limits introduced about two years ago. The additional revenue will be earmarked for general tax funds.

Currently, 16 properties are listed under the bylaw, down from 20 when it began.

“Overall, that’s a net positive — that we’re seeing commercial properties put back into production in the city,” she said.

Candace Toma, the city’s public and intergovernmental relations co-ordinator, said similar levies exist in other municipalities.

“So this is our own little spin on it, to try to incentivize people to fill those properties,” she noted.

The city’s infrastructure levy — known as the Underground Pipe and Asphalt Replacement (UPAR) tax — remains unchanged at $5.06 per frontage foot.

Meanwhile, an assessment error affecting 211 warehouse properties discovered by SAMA has been corrected. Pena said notices will include updated values and impacted owners will be given a 30-day extension to appeal.

The correction was made in accordance with the Cities Act and it will not delay the issuance of tax notices, she added.

Pena also reminded residents that tax appeals can only be made on assessed property values — not the tax increase itself.

“They cannot overrule council’s decision of the property tax increase,” she said.

Tax payments are due by June 30, with a 1.8 per cent monthly penalty on any unpaid balances beginning July 1. The city is encouraging residents to use the Tax Installment Payment Plan (TIPPs) to spread payments over the year. Letters will be sent to TIPPs participants in July if adjustments are needed.

For questions, property owners can contact the city’s tax clerk at 306-445-1706 or email taxes@cityofnb.ca. For a complete overview of the changes, click here.

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Kenneth.Cheung@pattisonmedia.com