What the 2026 Budget has in mind for Ottawa’s east end

or years, east-end residents say they have watched as new roads, libraries, and transit projects seem to pop up everywhere but their own neighbourhood. 

There has sometimes been a sentiment that the central and west parts of town have been prioritized instead. But as city council gets set to approve the 2026 budget next week, politicians are optimistic the tide has finally turned. 

The 2026 budget, which Mayor Mark Sutcliffe called “fiscally responsible", includes a tax hike of 3.75 per cent and an increase in transit fares by 2.5 per cent. This means the average taxpayer would be spending about $166 more in taxes a year. The cost of an OC Transpo adult monthly pass would climb from $135 to $138.50 – or a 10 cent increase for a single transit fare up to $4.10.

Beacon Hill-Cyrville Coun. Tim Tierney said he originally undecided if he was going to support the budget next Friday. There were a few missing pieces, he said, but after going back and forth with city staff, any reservations were eventually resolved. 

“I'm pressing ahead with things like a new skate park and a lot of great recreational facilities,” Tierney told the Lookout. “But even more so, the road resurfacing and less sexy, but very important, water main replacements.”

In Orléans West-Innes Ward, Coun. Laura Dudas said she is most looking forward to the large investments being made in aging infrastructure. In older neighbourhoods, she said some roads have not been repaved in over 40 years.

“We have a number of roads in Chateanneuf, but I'm also getting a large road in Blackburn Hamlet. I've got roads in Comet Glen being redone, one of which is Fortune Drive that is also a bus route,” said Dudas. “It's connecting the community to two major arteries: Jean D’Arc [Boulevard] and Orleans Boulevard. What's old will be new again.” 

Dudas said the 2026 budget also includes funding for Innes Road from the western bypass to the eastern bypass.

“There was work being done, water mains needed to be repaired. So it just didn't make sense to do it in advance. It wasn't on a list to be prioritized,” she said. “But I've pushed for this very long road to get redone and I'm absolutely ecstatic that we're going to see this major piece of infrastructure invested in.”

When the federal budget was tabled last month, one of the only investments for Ottawa on a municipal level was support to expand the Bob MacQuarrie Recreation Complex in Orléans. This funding was made available through the new Building Communities Strong Fund, which repurposed resources from the Housing Infrastructure Fund. 

Dudas said the city’s 2025 budget last year allocated $1.7 million to improve the facilities arena and pool facilities. She has been advocating for additional funds to build a gymnasium at the centre, which currently houses skating, swimming and pickleball facilities. With the amount of new development taking place in the area, Dudas said the community has been asking for an indoor place to play basketball or pickleball. 

Now with federal support at play, she is working to secure more funds to outfit the interior of the facility.

“It might take a little longer to build it, but we're so close to getting this gymnasium added on,” said Dudas.

Perhaps one of the most contentious pieces of the draft budget was the amount of new money to be allocated towards policing. 

Taxpayers are being asked to pay $46 more a year to help the OPS hire 25 new officers, cover salary increases, and create a new district policing model. The 26 million increase would bring law enforcement's budget up to $484 million for 2026. 

Some advocacy groups like Horizon Ottawa have requested the increase be capped at 2.9 per cent – the same as other departments – until data shows higher spending resulted in better results. But Ottawa Police Chief Eric Stubbs has said that even at five per cent, it won't be enough to keep up with the force's growing needs and costs. 

Higher salaries from collective agreements has been what's eaten up most of the budget increases in the past, he said, noting that officers' pay went up 6.85 per cent in 2025. It will climb to 19.35 per cent by 2029.

Tierney is pleased to see the high police budget increase, noting that police have been underfunded in the city for over a decade. 

“What I hear firsthand from everyone is that they want local policing. It's actually working, the community model. I had a 6 per cent decrease in violent crime in my area,” said Tierney. “Other wards, like Somerset and Kitchissippi, have seen massive double-digit increases in violent crime.”

Dudas agrees, saying that residents started noticing fewer police in their communities when budgets scaled back on community officers. 

“It’s something that people have been asking for a long time. One of the things that we're also noting is that response times and traffic enforcement was a huge priority for my residents,” she said. “They wanted to make sure that if there were people who were speeding in areas, like the Blackburn bypass, or along Orleans Boulevard, that if they called for police to come and do enforcement, they weren't waiting, or that police were available to come out and start to proactively do those blitzes.”

Orléans-South Navan Coun. Catherine Kitts said she is still not satisfied that the 2026 budget addresses the needs of east end residents. In her weekly newsletter, Kitts said she was continuing conversations with senior leadership before determining her vote. 

“While the overall increase in our budget is higher than I would like, it reflects the reality that municipalities are under intense inflationary pressures right now — rising costs of labour, materials, transportation, infrastructure renewal, and public safety services all force our hands,” she wrote. 

That said, her newsletter also pointed out some highlights.

Over $3 million is allocated in the budget to advance the detailed design for the widening of Brian Coburn Boulevard from Mer Bleue to Tenth line Road. Multiple intersection upgrades are also funded, including improvements at Mer Bleue and Decoeur Drive, and Renaud Road and Fern Casey Street. 

The Francois Dupuis Park expansion, which is supposed to break ground in mid-2026, has over $10 million assigned for construction, in addition to the $12.6 million allocated in last year’s budget. Upgrades being done to Don Boudria Park will also benefit the Orléans Little League team.

Kitts declined an interview with the Lookout, but in her newsletter, she addressed the tax increase and noted that other Canadian cities have seen even steeper increases. 

Toronto, for example, imposed a 5.5 per cent property tax increase in 2023 and an even larger 9.5 per cent hike in 2024. On the west coast, Vancouver raised its property taxes by 10.7 per cent in 2023 and 7.5 per cent in 2024. Calgary’s was more in line with Ottawa’s, but saw a 5.7 per cent increase in 2023 and 7.8 per cent rise in 2024. 

The others are not without reservations, either.

Tierney said the province's Bill 60 – also known as the Fighting Delays, Building Faster Act – has impacted the city in a few negative ways. Many cycling plans have been paused or cancelled. While not directly related to Beacon Hill-Cyrville Ward, he noted projects that were to be funded downtown will no longer go ahead. 

“Now we have this money that could have been attributed because it has to go somewhere. There are 180 projects that are on that list, or do we take it back, hold it for the first quarter and determine where that money goes,” said Tierney. “I would strongly advise that we use it to get sidewalk work done.”

Orléans East-Cumberland Coun. Matthew Luloff was not available for an interview in time for publication. In his newsletter Luloff said his ward is expected to receive over $10 million in roads, pathways, parks, facilities, and critical infrastructure improvements per the 2026 draft budget. It includes: 

Dudas said there was one key piece for her ward missing from the budget, but said she is working with city staff and will have further updates to announce soon.