Halifax will see new transit buses on the roads this year, and paid parking for the first time on Saturdays.

Councillors decided on some key items across Tuesday and Wednesday as they worked through the budget adjustment list, getting closer to landing on a final property tax rate.

That list includes dozens of cuts, new investments, or new revenue ideas for the city.

They approved 10 new articulated buses, to accelerate the new transit service plan. The move costs about $14 million for both buses and drivers this year.

The buses are expected to start in November to improve service for three of the most crowded and unreliable routes: the 3 Crosstown, 28 Bayers Lake, and 9A/B Herring Cove.

“I’m very excited to see this. I think it’ll make a big difference for residents and for transit in our city,” Coun. Kathryn Morse, who suggested fast-tracking the buses, told reporters on Wednesday.

Deputy Mayor Patty Cuttell said she constantly hears from people in her Spryfield district who are bypassed by buses that are too full, and this move is vital to get people to work on time and tackle congestion.

“These are issues that people are experiencing today, and there’s a real need to accelerate this and get the buses rolling,” Cuttell said outside the meeting Wednesday. 

Halifax is facing a possible 10.9 per cent increase to the average urban property tax bill, but councillors have said they hope to bring that down by the end of budget debates.

Mayor Andy Fillmore was one of the six council members who voted against the new buses, citing concerns that the multi-million dollar price tag was too much to add to the tax bill this year.

He said staff’s original proposal to wait until next year to start buying some of the 30 buses needed for the plan made sense, because “the top line has to be affordability.”

“I believe that was the right way to go. Obviously, council made a different decision … hopefully we can find savings elsewhere,” Fillmore told reporters Wednesday.

The budget committee also approved paid parking on Saturdays in the downtown Halifax, Dartmouth and Spring Garden zones, but the first hour will be free. That will bring in about $311,000 this year, and $414,600 in future years.

Overall street parking fees will also go up 25 per cent, bringing in about $975,000 this year and $1.3 million in upcoming years.

They cut funds earmarked for a stabilization centre that staff have said cannot be delivered because no private landlords would rent to the service, which would be a place for publicly intoxicated people rather than a police cell.

An extra $960,000 to accelerate road-safety improvements passed, including more flashing beacons and signal equipment for crosswalks, and upgrading intersections.

The committee also passed a $33,000 reduction in the mayor’s office, although multiple councillors said the item did not actually reflect what they asked for.

Councillors had asked for a briefing note outlining a “reduction of funding equivalent to one full time employee position” in the mayor’s office, which is about $61,000.

Cutting requested funds would have ‘adverse impact’ on mayor’s office

The office’s budget had increased about 16 per cent over last year, to hit about $1.1 million. Part of the increase was for a new communications and digital co-ordinator position, bringing the office from six to seven people.

But the staff note said cutting the full $61,000 would have a “direct and adverse impact on the ability of the office to function.” Instead, $33,000 in unspent funds related to wages that did not affect current staff’s salaries was found.

“I don’t appreciate it being presented as if this is what council asked for, because it wasn’t. We asked for one position,” Coun. Sam Austin said during the Tuesday meeting.

Coun. Morse also questioned the change, and said mayor Mike Savage functioned well with six people in the office.

When asked about her confidence level in Mayor Fillmore, Morse said she was left confused by the move from his office, which did not follow the processes at City Hall she was used to in the past.

“I guess I like to see things follow the rules, and sometimes it feels like the rules are being bent,” Morse said.

Fillmore said he and his staff were not attempting to mislead anyone, but the wording of the motion specifically addressed dollar values, “not to eliminate people.”

He told reporters Wednesday that the office is busy with events like the New Year’s Eve levee, hosting youth sports teams, connecting with residents, and cutting any more funds “would impact our ability to deliver the work that we do.”

The budget committee will continue their budget debates this week. The overall budget will pass in late March.

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