Campaign to stop proposed property tax in Halifax gains more than 6K signatures

Halifax City Hall is pictured. (Source: Callum Smith/CTV News Atlantic)

A campaign to stop a proposed 10.9 per cent property tax hike in Halifax has gained more than 6,000 signatures.

The Stop the Hikes campaign says the current trajectory of the budget will mean a 40-to-50 per cent increase in property taxes in the next four-to-five years, and it aims to cut that number.

In an update on Monday, Rental Housing Providers Nova Scotia said the largest number of residents opposing the property tax increases so far come from:

• District 12, Timberlea-Beechville-Clayton Park-Wedgewood: 756 residents
• District 4, Cole Harbour – Preston – Westphal – Cherry Brook: 674 residents
• District 6, Harbourview – Burnside – Dartmouth East: 636 residents
• District 10, Bedford Basin West: 555 residents
• District 9, Halifax West Armdale: 484 residents

In a news release from last month, the municipality said the tax bill increase was due to “unavoidable cost drivers.”

The campaign hopes for council to apply an affordability lens when making the budget with priority on core services, reviewing spending, and finding “operational efficiencies” before reaching further tax increases.

The Budget Committee are set to release the final budget vote by March 31.

With files from CTV News Atlantic’s Sean Mott.

For more Nova Scotia news, visit our dedicated provincial page