Owen Sound’s mayor is touting the city’s progress on taxes as one of its achievements in 2023.

Ian Boddy spent some time talking about numbers in the 2023 BMA Municipal Study during a year-end address to council earlier this month, saying Owen Sound has moved into the “mid-category” for the first time when it comes to net levy per capita.

The city’s figure was $1,850, putting it in the mid-range of the 121 participating municipalities in the annual study. Boddy says it’s the first time Owen Sound has moved out of the “high” category in BMA’s annual measurement of that figure.

“Given the very low levy increase for 2023, next year when we get this report we’re going to be moving down again. And probably a very big leap,” Boddy explains. “And I expect with the decisions that we’ve just been making for 2024, that the following year we’re going to be moving down even more.”

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It should be noted, the net levy per capita figure in the BMA study doesn’t consider services provided. Owen Sound, for example, charges additional fees for curbside waste collection and it was still ranked alongside other municipalities which fund that service through their levies.

Boddy touched on many other topics in his year-end address. He says “the city’s greatest success” this year came from the community’s response to tragedy and challenges.

“The city saw three homicides in six weeks … this has been a real challenge for our community. Our community does not accept it. They don’t want to see it, naturally. It’s not really what our community is about. ” Boddy says. “I was assured at a recent police services board meeting that they continue to investigate and are making progress on all three events.”

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Owen Sound hosting Scotiabank Hockey Day in Canada was another highlight from the past year for the city’s mayor. He also says there was progress made on several initiatives, including a new short-term accommodations bylaw being implemented in March 2024, a municipal accommodation tax, new accessible transit buses and the official renaming of Kelso Beach at Nawash Park.

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“The other issue and challenge we have … is the challenge from opiate addiction and homelessness,” Boddy says. “Every community is suffering this. You have to leave town to see it. That doesn’t mean we don’t have a problem or it’s not a challenge, it is. We recognize it is.”

Boddy says “all of the steps” are being taken to address this. He says the county is responsible for housing as its get provincial funding for it, and the city doesn’t. Boddy says Grey County spent $18.5-million in 2023 on housing. It manages just over 1,000 units.

The county spent another $2.1-million on its homelessness programs this year, he says.