2025 Orillia Budget Preview Day Two
By John Swartz
Orillia council will wrap up dissecting the operating budget during the morning of Wednesday, November 6. The afternoon schedule features a parade of board agency and committee member presenting their budget requests.
Below is a summary of those requests.
The Orillia and Lake Country physician recruitment committee, with chair Marino Fernandopulle defending their budget request, is asking for $75K. Their City contribution went from $50K to $75 last year. Their 2025 revenue is $162K, of which fundraising, grant and donations make up $60K. The Townships of Oro-Medonte and Severn also contribute to their budget.
The Orillia Public Library Board will be represented by chair Deb Watson and its new CEO Meaghan Wilkinson. The operating budget is increasing by $237K to $3.2 million. Only $2.9 million relies on the tax levy. Municipalities must fund libraries in Ontario, but libraries operate at arm’s length under a board.
The accessibility advisory committee’s budget will be presented by committee chair Shandell Conboy. Their budget has been $1,750 for a few years, but they are asking it be raised to $3,900. The committee says the cost of advertising has gone up to the point they cannot absorb increases any longer. They also want to create an award and increase events around National AccessAbility Week, which takes $1,500 of the budget increase.
Committee member Paul Raymond is representing the municipal heritage committee The committee’s budget has been stuck at $4,230 for several years, of which the City funds $1,600. They want to increase their budget in 2025 to $11K, with all of the increase funded by the City. The increase is for costs, approx. $7K, to complete property designations (research, notices, by-law preparation, legal fees, bronze plaque) and to create a first story board for French’s Stand (they hope to do more in subsequent years).
The commemorative awards selection panel is represented by the chair, Chuck Penny. Their budget is also going up significantly, though they have had the same budget total for the past 6 years. They say the cost of investigating nominees for the Order of Orillia award and the Orillia Hall of Fame, and the costs of having awards ceremonies have gone up and want to increase the budget from $1,600 to $4,500.
The waste management advisory committee chair, Barb Shakell-Barkey will present their budget. They are submitting the same budget of $1,895 as last year.
The Orillia food access and sustainability working group is a new committee. Jacob Kearey-Moreland, the group’s meeting facilitator, and member Chris Peacock will present the first budget. They are asking for $6,000 which will go toward education seminars and operating supplies.
The executive director of the Child and Youth Advocacy Centre, Simcoe/Muskoka, Dawn MacDonald, and program manager Kate Waugh will be asking the City for $45K. the rest of their $830K budget comes from federal and provincial grants of various kinds and other fundraising. They asked the City for $20K in 2024.
Information Orillia is sending board chair Michael Gollinger and executive director Tammera Seyffert to present their budget. They are not asking for an increase of the $50K City grant they received in 2024. Their overall budget is $13K less than in 2024 because a grant from another source they received in the past is not expected.
The Downtown Orillia Business Improvement Area Board will be represented by the chair, Michael Fredson, and the new general manager, Deron Johnston. Their overall budget is decreasing by $47K to $360K because they are not using reserves to supplement their budget in 2025 and they expect the general revenue (mostly fees for event participation) to go down. They are however planning to increase their tax levy by $6K to $301K. The BIA has a special tax levy on downtown properties.
Most notable about the Sustainable Orillia presentation is they are represented by a new president, Sarah Patterson and a new vice-president, Danny Epstein. They are presenting an identical budget as 2024 and asking for funding of $11.500.
The Orillia Museum of Art and History treasurer, Doug Frost, and executive director Ninette Gyorody are presenting OMAH’s budget. The total budget for 2025 is projected to be a deficit ($13K) of $765K. The City funds $180K of that. Most of their revenue comes from other grants, fundraising, sales, and program/exhibition fees. They have an operating reserve fund of $378K, which they will presumably draw on.
The Lighthouse and Orillia Emergency Overnight Warming Centre executive director, Linda Goodall, and shelter and housing director, Angelique Noorlander, will present their budget request. The Lighthouse is the lead organization operating the warming center at the Orillia Community Church on Colborne Street. There were 50 nights it operated last winter. They are asking for the same amount, $31,500 as last year. The County has increased its grant form $19K to $55K. The overall budget increased from $52K to $86k mostly because the amount of people using the center is greater than anticipated and requires another staff person, and they are allocating costs like laundry and supplies to the program which they did not do in previous years.
Next week council will deal with the capital budget on Tuesday and Wednesday. Tuesday’s budget preview is here.
The proceedings can be watched live on the City’s Youtube channel.
(Photos by Swartz – SUNonline/Orillia; Images Supplied)
