Barrie Fire and Emergency Service (BFES) has found ways to douse its budget pressures in 2025.
Its base budget expenses are to be almost $33.9 million next year, a $2.7 million or 8.66 per cent hike.
But with Mayor Alex Nuttall’s direction of no increase to the city’s portion of the 2025 operating budget, which includes BFES, savings have been found said Barrie Fire Chief Kevin White.
“We’re confined by our salaries, being the greatest part of our budget,” he said, “so because of adding additional staff, we have gone over a little bit and that had to be made up in other areas either of the fire department or the city.”
BFES salaries and benefits are forecast at almost $32.7 million next year, for example.
The fire department’s staffing level is at 202, with 145 in operations responding to fires, hazardous material incidents, motor vehicle collisions and providing emergency medical services.
Next year 16 to 20 new staff will be added, with 14 slated for the new south-Barrie station, and the rest to cover for replacements and retirements.
But BFES found savings for next year — including the reduction of equipment and capital purchases, and services.
“It will definitely not have any effect on operations,” White said of the savings. “We work under the total budget management program. Our capital purchases will have to be reduced in 2025 and that equipment would be some things that we order sort of regularly — extrication equipment or trench rescue equipment.
“We just won’t be able to order as much of it in 2025, but we will ensure all of our operations are fully functioning.”
Equipment and capital purchases, for example, fall to $200,000 next year from $275,000 this year.
Reductions to make the zero per cent directive will also include contracted services such as administrative cleaning and some repairs to equipment. A contract for compressor repairs will reduce costs, as will cutting travel and conference attendance that is mostly for management staff.
BFES services costs fall to $531,000 from $588,000, year over year.
And there are no major capital purchases on the 2025 books.
“We just received two new fire trucks that will be going into service right now, so I don’t believe there are any scheduled for 2025,” White said. “They are actually 600 to 800 days before we receive them (from when ordered).
“So the two we just received, I think they were about 600 days coming in. These are things that are forecasted down the road.”
Barrie’s sixth fire station on Mapleview Drive East will cost $10.4 million and White said it will be operational at the end of October or the middle of November at the latest.
Growth charts and call volume statistics will help the department determine the best location for Barrie’s seventh fire station, and White said the next area of focus would probably be Letitia Heights, at the top of Anne Street.
City council gave final approval Dec. 11 to the city operations portion of the 2025 budget, with gross expenditures of $342.6 million and a net property tax levy requirement of $197.8 million.
It also comes with no increase to the city portion of the operating budget — which pays for more than 60 city services such as snow clearing, road repairs, garbage pick-up, transit, parks and recreation, water treatment and fire protection.
BFES is part of city operations, unlike Barrie Police Service, which is considered a service partner — along with the County of Simcoe and Barrie Public Library.
The 2025 police budget will be discussed by council in January. At this point it totals $72.34 million, which is $4.8 million or 6.99 per cent more than this year. The police budget is traditionally about 20 per cent of Barrie’s operating budget, and the largest portion.
The requested net levy for BFES in 2025 is almost $32.6 million, or 8.72 per cent more than this year.
This is what’s called Barrie’s strong mayor's budget.
Nuttall instructed staff to prepare a motion approving a 2025 tax-supported base budget for city operations and the infrastructure investment fund, with gross expenditures of $342.6 million and a net property tax levy requirement of $197.8 million.
Ontario’s Municipal Act provides the head of council with the authority to give direction to city staff in writing, and a zero per cent increase in the city’s operating budget comes with Barrie’s budget, according to a budget memo on mayoral direction to city staff, from Nuttall, dated July 12, 2024.
Barrie councillors are to receive 2025 budgets from city service partners — county, police and library — on Jan. 8, then hear presentations of these budgets Jan. 15. General committee’s budget talks are to be Jan. 22, with city council approval of the total operating and capital budgets slated for Jan. 29.
Property taxes are calculated based on the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation’s (MPAC) assessed value. MPAC last did a province-wide assessment in 2016, so Barrie’s property values are significantly lower than actual 2024 or 2025 market values.
The city’s final operating and capital budgets set property taxes, which everyone pays directly or through their rent, and also sets city levels for those 60-plus services.
