The Corporation of the City of Kawartha Lakes

Minutes

Budget Committee Meeting

Tuesday, September 30, 2025

1:00 P.m. - 4:00 P.m.

Council Chambers

City Hall

26 Francis Street, Lindsay, Ontario K9V 5R8

Members:

• Deputy Mayor Charlie McDonald
• Councillor Tracy Richardson
• Councillor Dan Joyce
• Councillor Pat Warren

Accessible formats and communication supports are available upon request. The City of Kawartha Lakes is committed to accessibility for persons with disabilities. Please contact [email protected] if you have an accessible accommodation request.

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1.

Call to Order

Chair Deputy Mayor McDonald called the meeting to order at 1:00 p.m. Councillors Tracy Richardson, Dan Joyce, and Pat Warren were in attendance in Council Chambers. 
Chief Administrative Officer R. Taylor, Director of Corporate Services S. Beukeboom, Paramedics Chief S. Johnston, Deputy Chief of Professional Standards J. Golden, Deputy Chief of Operations S. Lucas, Superintendent of Staff Development and Wellness B. Ferguson, Executive Assistant to Paramedic Service R. Ford, Fire Chief T. Jones, Deputy Fire Chief J. Bignell, Deputy Fire Chief S. Moore, Executive Assistant to Fire Services V. Knights, Director of Human Services C. Faber, Manager of Housing M. Corley, Manager of Social Services A. Truax, Manager of Tenant Services S. Smith, Program Supervisor K. Fleetwood, Executive Director for Victoria Manor D. Bulmer, Supervisor of Budget and Financial Planning J. Hood, and Executive Assistant to Mayor and Council C. Ellison were also in attendance.
Treasurer C. Daynes and VP Regional Operations for Sienna P. Welch attended via zoom.
The Chair reminded everyone that the meeting is being live-streamed to YouTube for the public to watch. 

2.

Administrative Business

2.1

Adoption of Agenda

• BC2025-26
  Moved By Councillor Richardson
  Seconded By Councillor Warren

  That the Agenda for the Budget Committee Meeting of September 30, 2025, be adopted as circulated.

  Carried

2.2

Declaration of Pecuniary Interest

There were no declarations of pecuniary interest disclosed.

2.3

Adoption of Minutes from Previous Meeting

• BC2025-27
  Moved By Councillor Joyce
  Seconded By Councillor Warren

  That the Minutes of the Budget Committee Meeting of Monday, September 29, 2025, be received and adopted.

  Carried

3.

Deputations

There were no deputations.

4.

New Business

4.1

BC2025-06.4.1

Paramedic Services Budget Presentation
Sara Johnston, Chief of Paramedic Services

Chief Johnston presented the Paramedic Service Budget. She provided an overview of the Administration division; Deputy Chief Golden provided an overview of the Professional Standards division and Deputy Chief Lucas provided an overview of the Operations division. The Paramedic Service is mandated by the Province to provide Paramedic and Ambulance services through the Ambulance Act. In 2024, they responded to 13,836 calls or 1 call every 38 minutes with 8 ambulances on days and 6 on nights across 5 stations and 2 posts. Funding from the province covers approximately 50% of budget costs and 100% of the Community Paramedic and Dedicated Offload Nursing Program (DONP). The Community Paramedics hold 22 clinics each month and serve approximately 750 clients. 
Chief Johnston highlighted a couple of budget lines, including the Salaries and Wages line which reflects a new collective agreement, WSIB costs to cover either full or top-wages for staff who are out on WSIB leave, and overtime costs. Accomplishments for 2025 included the addition of one more night ambulance to help distribute calls; the launch of the Medical Priority Dispatch System, which has reduced the number of 'lights and sirens' calls from 70% last year down to 47% this year; permanent funding for the Community Paramedic program and funding for both the Dedicated Offload Nurse Program and the Land Ambulance grant; and and substantial movement toward the new Paramedic Headquarters. In 2026 construction will begin on the new building, they will deploy nine new ambulances and are looking to expand the Professional Standards division with the addition of a Superintendent of Staff Wellness and develop a staff wellness strategy. One further position, a logistics technician, is also being requested to help manage the paramedic fleet and equipment. 
The total proposed budget for 2026 is $9,988,000, an increase of $2,642,000 over 2025.

• BC2025-28
  Moved By Councillor Richardson
  Seconded By Councillor Warren

  That the Paramedic Services Budget Presentation be received.

  Carried

4.2

BC2025-06.4.2

Fire Services Budget Presentation
Terry Jones, Fire Chief

Chief Jones presented the Fire Services budget. The department includes administration, Fire Prevention, Emergency Management, Support Services (the firefighters), and Training. The Fire Department is served by 19 stations and to-date in 2025 has responded to 2339 calls, which is an increase of 36% over last year, plus an additional 539 assist calls, and an increase of 10% in medical calls. While some calls can be attributed to the ice storm, this still presents a significant increase. The Chief highlighted a couple of the budget lines including the Contracted Services line, which represents a large increase from 2025 due mostly to the cost of snowplowing, which was $350,000 over budget last year due to increase costs. The Interfunctional Adjustments line represents a large decrease, due to the centralization of the communication devices budget to the I.T. department. While it is a savings here, it will be an increase to that department budget line.
In 2025 there were a number of accomplishments, including the launch of a new Records Management program, I.C.O. to replace Fire House; they received grant funding for cancer mitigation strategies as well as grant funding for the FireSmart program; the development of a firefighter recognition program to help with retention of trained firefighters; recruited two classes of volunteer firefighters; and participated as one of 12 fire departments across the province in a Cree Nation mentorship program providing experience in Fire Code enforcement. In 2026 the significant target is the certification of all firefighters according to the new provincial legislation, which comes into effect on July 1st. In addition they are looking to undertake a Location Study and Master Fire Plan; enhance training for specific types of fire rescue; expand fire safety curricula to grades 3, 6, and 9, and complete a number of fire station renovations. The main pressure is the timeline for certification, which is prompting a request for two additional training instructors, plus one Emergency Vehicle technician and one more Fire Prevention Officer. 
The total budget request for Fire Services is $11,047,000, which is a reduction of $973,000 from 2025.

• BC2025-29
  Moved By Councillor Joyce
  Seconded By Councillor Warren

  That the Fire Services Budget Presentation be received.

  Carried

4.3

BC2025-06.4.3

Human Services Department Budget Presentation
Cheryl Faber, Director of Human Services

Director Faber provided the proposed 2026 budget for the Human Services department, noting that Victoria Manor's budget is not included here as it will be moving to its own department next year. Human Services comprises the Child Care Services, Social Assistance Services (Ontario Works), and Housing and Homelessness Services. It was noted that there are a lot of federal and provincial grants that flow through this department to provide services to residents; this results in large expenditures in the Transfer to External Clients lines (especially in Child Care through the Federal Canada-Wide Early Learning and Child Care (CWELCC) grant of about $23 million and $12.8 million for Ontario Works). It was also noted that across each of the divisions in the department there have been many legislative changes and more are forth-coming. This has resulted in extra time spent in adjusting to the changes and readying programs for entirely new funding models in some cases. Federal funding amounts in Housing Services is also decreasing year-after-year, anticipating that it will be phased out by 2030. 
Manager Truax provided an overview of the Children's Services and Ontario Works budgets and accomplishments. The CWELCC funding model changed again, but there is currently no plan in place for the expiry of that funding in March 2026. The division created 140 new childcare spaces this year, increasing the access rate for children 0-5 to 28.5%, up from 22% in 2023. The Ontario Works funding model is expected to change again in 2027 as well. This division maintained a 92% completion rating on action plans for social assistance caseload and successfully advocated for financial support for social assistance for certain recipients after the Ice Storm. Manager Corley provided an overview of the Housing and Homelessness budgets and accomplishments. In 2025 a new 10-Year Housing and Homelessness strategy was completed, the implementation of which will begin next year. They also implemented the new Encampment protocol, which has seen great success. Last year they were monitoring 40 sites and approximately 60+ individuals; currently they are monitoring 7 sites and approximately 10 individuals. In 2026 the department is looking to create a further 127 childcare spaces and open the new integrated care hub, which will offer 12 emergency shelter beds, among other priorities.
The total budget request for Human Services is $8,598,000, an increase of $1,691,000 over last year, including a request for 5 new positions.

• BC2025-30
  Moved By Councillor Richardson
  Seconded By Councillor Warren

  That the Human Services Department Budget Presentation be received.

  Carried

4.4

BC2025-06.4.4

Kawartha Lakes Haliburton Housing Corporation Budget Presentation
Cheryl Faber, Director of Human Services

Director Faber provided an overview of the Kawartha Lakes and Haliburton Housing Corporation (KLHHC) and its relationship to the municipality through the division of Human Services. The mandates of KLH are provincially legislated and the corporation has a Board of Directors, but the day-to-day operations are the responsibility of two main divisions, Tenant Services led by Manager Smith and Building and Property led by Manager Quibell. The largest increase in the budget overview is for interest on Long-Term debt, which is due to the opening of two building in Lindsay last year and Fenelon Falls later this year. One more building in Minden will open next year. These properties are mandated to offer Rent-Geared-to-Income units and do not operate for revenue (and are not expected to). The corporation sold three other properties in 2025 and is looking to sell another possible three in 2026. There was a focus in 2025 on enhanced tenant engagement opportunities and to empower staff to be more responsive to the complexity of tenant needs. In 2026, there will be a focus on realigning the Board mandate with the Manager to streamline the governance process, including a new Shareholder Agreement, as well as developing a new 5-year Strategic Plan. Budget pressures include increase of costs for tenant support as well as increasing costs in renovations when tenants move out. There are often substantial costs associated with this move-out process due to repair needs.
The total budget request for KLHHC is $4,448,000 an increase of $935,000, including a request for one new building technician. 

• BC2025-31
  Moved By Councillor Warren
  Seconded By Councillor Joyce

  That the Kawartha Lakes Haliburton Housing Corporation Budget Presentation be received.

  Carried

4.5

BC2025-06.4.5

Victoria Manor Budget Presentation
Cheryl Faber, Director of Human Services

Director Faber presented the Victoria Manor budget for 2026 noting that it will be moving to its own Department next year. She outlined the governance model for the Long-Term Care home and the legislative requirements for its compliance with regulations. The Manor serves 166 residents and continues to strive toward achieving 4 hours of Direct Care per resident. They are currently working through their 3-year accreditation process, which should be complete by December. The Director highlighted the Net Promoter Score which reflects resident and family satisfaction and was 66 and 52 respectively. These are considered excellent scores and highlights the positive atmosphere at the Manor. The main administrative focus in 2026 will be the transition to a new Director; they are also looking to improve resident experience, reduce avoidable transfers to the hospital, and improve the resident dining experience. 
One of the main budget pressures this year is the rising cost of food, but also contracted services for laundry, supplies, and snow removal. Another pressure is the continued reliance on staffing agencies in order to maintain adequate staffing levels. 
The total budget for Victoria Manor is $2,875,000, an increase of $276,000 over 2025.

• BC2025-32
  Moved By Councillor Warren
  Seconded By Councillor Joyce

  That the Victoria Manor Budget Presentation be received.

  Carried

5.

Other Business

6.

Adjournment

• BC2025-33
  Moved By Councillor Richardson
  Seconded By Councillor Warren

  That the Meeting adjourn at 4:22 p.m.

  Carried