(File photo/battlefordsNOW staff)

By Kenneth Cheung

2026 BUDGET TALKS

North Battleford eyes small tax hike as council weighs $7.3M in 2026 projects

Sep 16, 2025 | 1:07 PM

City council has started early talks on its 2026 capital budget, where a one per cent tax increase is being proposed to help fund smaller projects.

Finance director Margarita Pena said the increase would generate about $180,000, which will assist with capital projects valued under $100,000.

She added that this would be the final year the city requests the special levy.

“This is the 1 per cent we’ve been asking for the last five years or so and I am just happy to report that 2026 will be the final year in which the administration requests this additional one per cent,” she told council during the Sept. 15 meeting.

The overall capital request sits at $7,397,978 — well above the city’s historic average of about $3.4 million. Coun. Kent Lindgren noted the figure was “quite a bit higher than what we usually budget” and questioned whether projects would need to be trimmed before final approval.

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Pena said departments had already reduced their asks before the budget was presented and that council’s feedback will help decide which requests are essential and which can be delayed.

She added it is “hard to say” if the full $7.3 million in projects can proceed, since the city won’t know how much money is available until the operating budget is developed later this fall.

Those projects include:

– City Hall roof and renovations: $954,999 to replace the aging roof, rated in 2020 as having only one to four years of life left. Another $80,000 is planned to convert the old council chamber into a meeting room.

– Fire services: $1.3 million to purchase a new pumper truck.The city is also setting aside close to $3 million in its 10-year plan to replace the aerial ladder truck by 2033.

– Industrial park drainage: $225,000 to repair culverts, ditches and add new channels in Parson Industrial Park.

– Downtown security cameras: $30,000 for a system aimed at deterring crime and supporting police investigations.

– Field house resurfacing: $475,000 to resurface the courts and track at the NationsWEST Field House.

– Police detachment building: $100,000 for flooring replacement and $110,000 to begin work on an air conditioning system renewal.

– Boilers and HVAC: $500,000 for new boilers and HVAC systems in civic facilities, including City Hall.

– Waste collection equipment: $300,000 for a new automated garbage truck to handle street bins.

Council was reminded that North Battleford’s borrowing ceiling is $55 million, and long-term projects such as a new arena or upgrades to Territorial Drive could push the city past that limit unless the province agrees to an increase or scopes are reduced.

Public delegations and further deliberations are scheduled throughout the fall. Council will hear community requests on Oct. 20, hold budget meetings on Nov. 13, 20 and 27, and vote on the final 2026 budget on Dec. 8.

All meetings are open to the public and the times will be announced ahead of each date, with agendas and Zoom links posted online at cityofnb.ca.

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Kenneth.Cheung@pattisonmedia.com