Keeping Barrie residents safe will cost more again this year.
The price of city policing could jump by almost seven per cent in 2025, or by $4.72 million, city council heard Wednesday night.
Members of the Barrie Police Service Board presented a 2025 budget of $72.24 million, which is 6.99 per cent more than last year.
“It’s fiscally responsible while maintaining and enhancing operations,” police services board chairman Greg Ferguson said of this year’s budget. “We understand and appreciate the difficult economic environment for members of our community.
“These are challenging times for many, but we know our budget is fiscally responsible and well below the (policing) increases seen across the province," he added.
“It’s tough times and increases are done with great caution,” said Coun. Jim Harris. “What I see is a very responsible budget that shows good value.”
This hike would have a tax-rate increase of 1.47 per cent on Barrie’s property tax rate, according to Craig Gillespie, Barrie’s senior manager of corporate finance and investments. One per cent of the city budget equals $3.2 million.
Police spending in 2025 still requires city council's approval later this month, after that budget is debated by councillors.
But councillors generally support the police budget, they said Wednesday.
“I’m the one who picks on police and 6.99 per cent is a huge number,” said Coun. Amy Courser. “But I’m seeing on a lot of it your hands are tied.”
“I look at 6.99 and say how am I going to explain it to the residents,” said Coun. Bryn Hamilton, who nonetheless has concerns about whether the size of the police force fits with population growth.
“Do we have enough officers and are we keeping pace with our growth?” she asked. “How do we know we are not falling below the pace of growth?”
“When you compare it to what other municipalities are experiencing, it is significantly lower,” said Coun. Gary Harvey, chairman of the city’s finance and responsible governance committee. “Ninety-five per cent of your ask (budget request) is non-discretionary, all salaries and benefits.”
Salaries and benefits are about 95 per cent of the entire police budget. Barrie police presently have 250 sworn officers and 125 civilian members. The 2025 police budget includes six new sworn officers.
Police budget materials offered comparisons to other jurisdictions.
Peel Region’s police budget could increase by $144 million or 23 per cent this year, York Region’s by $31.4 million or 7.7 per cent, Sudbury’s by $4.9 million or 6.2 per cent and South Simcoe’s by $3.1 million or 11.6 per cent in neighbouring Innisfil/Bradford.
The numbers say Barrie police continues to be busy, and the 2025 budget reflects that. Calls for service totalled 81,513 in 2023, 71,071 in 2022 and 73,622 in 2021, and 66,127 in 2020.
“The city is growing and changing,” said Barrie Police Chief Rich Johnston, “and with that comes a greater complexity of calls. With a growing city, there is more (call) volume. It’s like traffic.”
Police budget spending in 2025 had been projected at 5.79 per cent more, or another $3.9 million, for a total of $71.43 million.
But a downtown deployment initiative, requiring seven full-time special constables and costing $910,787 annually, is the additional cost to the police budget which hiked the increase to 6.99 per cent from 5.79 per cent.
Barrie Police Services finance manager Tyrell Turner has not only said the initiative would require funding for the special constables, but 10 per cent of the annual cost includes overhead, such as training, equipment and vehicles, if needed.
“You’re going to see a lot more of us in the downtown,” said Johnston.
Barrie’s 2025 police budget also includes $486,000 for a five-year operating lease of new conductive energy devices, Axon Taser 10s.
Turner has identified a projected $524,000 surplus in this year’s police budget and an operating reserve of $887,000.
Funding from both of those sources are to pay for the Tasers.
The 2024 police budget was $67.5 million, or a 6.78 per cent increase from 2023, when it was $63.24 million.
Barrie’s police budget is usually about 20 per cent of the city’s total annual operating budget, and its most expensive item; the annual city operating/capital budgets set service levels and property tax increases in Barrie.
This year, Barrie police spending is 22.58 per cent of the city’s operating budget.
Not every policing expense affects the 2025 police budget, however.
City police said in late October they are in the market for a new armoured rescue vehicle (ARV), as approved by the police board, from year-end surplus funds in their 2023 budget, for as much as $450,000.
After more than eight years in service, Rescue 1 has reached the end of its useful life and future repairs are estimated to become cost-prohibitive.
The police budget is part of the city budget, and thus requires council approval.
General committee’s budget talks will be Jan. 22, with city council approval of the total operating and capital budgets on Jan. 29.
Then and only then will Barrie homeowners know the level of their 2025 property taxes.
The city’s service partners all presented their budgets Wednesday night.
Aside from police, the Barrie Public Library and the County of Simcoe made presentations on services provided and the city’s share of these costs this year.
The county, including its capital reserve transfer, is asking for $2.32 million or 7.6 per cent more — a 0.72 per cent increase to Barrie’s property tax rate.
The library is asking for $93,170 or 0.97 per cent more this year, adding 0.03 per cent to homeowners tax rates.
In total the city’s service partners, including the conservation authorities and local health unit, are asking for $7.3 million more in 2025, which is 6.59 per cent more and lead to a total hit on property taxes of 2.28 per cent more this year.
