Thread by @ShawnMenard1

The most inefficient spenders at Ottawa City Hall have been the very same people who have repeated the slogan “keep taxes low”. They have done the exact opposite. Here’s how- 🧵 #Ottawa #Ottnews

1) They have put pressure on everyone’s taxes and the environment by expanding Ottawa’s sprawl. That decision alone is billions in cost to our city over time $465/person/year. cbc.ca/news/canada/ot…

Ottawa’s road widening and expansion program costs us dearly and it doesn’t reduce congestion. We spend hundreds of millions expanding new roads over a term and take on new expensive operations to maintain those roads. We already maintain 6000km of roads. bloomberg.com/news/articles/…

The new Strandherd Road widening and track separation project is expected to cost over $112 million, six times more than the city’s “record investment” in new affordable housing builds. ottawa.ca/en/city-hall/p…

We give out large subsidies to development corporations for brownfield remediation without any proof it’s effective and we provide tax breaks to other corporate entities- Porsche dealerships and airport business cbc.ca/news/canada/ot…

Ottawa debt has more than tripled in 10 years under the current administration. Yes you heard that correctly. City debt was $1.08 billion in 2011, it now sits at $3.5 billion. Our top project debts are all public-private partnerships - LRT and Lansdowne.

The private debt means public wealth transferred to private corporations (the same ones we are in lawsuits with now paying extra unanticipated funds as a result of the P3). Debt servicing costs are increasing. In 2011 they were $120.8M/year, in 2021 they were $239.3M/year.

The police budget has tripled in 20 years, outpacing inflation, population growth and annual tax increases for a total budget over $380 million. We know that a focus on mental health supports can save peoples lives and lower costs for the city, yet Council is reticent to de-task.

To put that figure in perspective, we spend 1/3rd of that on Ottawa Public Health. The city allocates just $27 million to social service agencies who have to scrape to get by and are on the front lines helping with root cause issues. Just $15 million on affordable housing Capital

If you want to battle worldwide inflation and multi national corporations that are increasing prices at alarming rates, the city of Ottawa is probably the wrong place to cut. But let’s first start with honesty about how so called ‘keep taxes low’ sloganeers have been spending.

The city has so much potential to shift our collective future. Renovate our buildings to reduce emissions and save, transform our streets for efficient transportation, invest in affordable housing, and focus on resident health, well being and quality of life.