West Lincoln Council adopts 2026 Budget

Mayor Cheryl Ganann waived the mayoral veto period at the January 12 All Committees meeting and West Lincoln’s 2026 Budget is now adopted. This concludes the Township’s first budget process under the Province’s Strong Mayor legislation.

“Council’s top priority in this year’s budget was affordability. We know families and businesses are feeling the impact of challenging economic times and having to make difficult decisions, and we worked hard to keep levy increases as low as possible while continuing to invest in the services and infrastructure our community relies on every day,” says Mayor Cheryl Ganann. “This budget reflects a balanced approach, protecting residents from undue financial strain while ensuring we maintain and improve the quality of life in our community.”

With Council approved amendments, the final 2026 budget reflects a general tax levy of $10,506,490 and hospital levy of $206,000 for the West Lincoln Memorial Hospital. Together, these levies represent a 1.26% increase over 2025, after factoring in assessment growth. The Urban Service Area levy of $193,140 was also adopted.

For an average residential home in the non-urban area, the estimated annual increase is $21.71 (or $1.81 per month) on the Township portion of the tax bill. An average residential home in the urban area would see an estimated annual increase of $23.55 (or $1.96 per month) on the Township portion of the tax bill.

2026 Budget Highlights

Infrastructure improvement

• Twenty Road Resurfacing, from Range Road 2 to South Grimsby Road 8
• Dufferin Street Reconstruction, including water and wastewater infrastructure
• South Grimsby Road 8 Road Resurfacing from Regional Road 20 to Twenty Road 

Service enhancement

• Software to speed up building permitting, streamline resident-staff communication and improve customer service experience
• Expanded customer service model to create a one-window approach across Municipal Offices and the West Lincoln Community Centre
• Strategic investment to improve and grow community events, expand recreation programming and increase community engagement
• Website updates to improve accessibility, navigation and create a clearer path to information 

Economic development

• Projects to improve collaboration with industry partners across West Lincoln to attract new business and retain and grow existing businesses
• New Economic Development Strategy 

The 2026 Budget can be viewed on the Township’s Budgets and Finances webpage.

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