By David Wiwchar

Port Alberni taxes increase 14%

Mar 13, 2025 | 11:11 AM

While the 2025 budget and 5-year financial plan has now been set, city staff have been tasked with finding additional savings or increasing revenues through service charges and fees.

Mayor Sharie Minions said it’s been a difficult budget year, and council worked hard to reduce a proposed tax increase from 25% down to 14.

“It has been a very challenging year budget wise, and we have had to make a lot of I think reductions and changes to our service levels that we haven’t really contemplated in the past,” she said. “Although we have passed our budget, we are continuing on work on review of some of our service levels and services that we provide still with anticipation that we probably will continue to reduce some of the services further.

Minions said the loss of SAN Group’s million dollar a year tax bill for the past two years hurt the city, only months after Western Forest Products shuttered APD – the last of their operations here.

“I think at this point in time with some of the things happening in the industrial tax base we have had to find ways that are outside of the norm to reduce and we’re gonna continue to do that,” she said.

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The tax increase represents a $350 increase to the average city property.

The regional district will set their budget by the end of this month.