The City of Ottawa is proposing a two-year pilot project to provide a financial boost to some of the capital’s biggest festivals. The Major Festivals Fund would provide an additional $1 million per year to festivals in the city that have the largest tourism and economic impact. The fund would be in partnership with Ottawa Tourism, pending budget approval, the city says. “This new support will ensure our marquee festivals continue to grow and succeed. I’m grateful to the Ottawa Festival Network for their terrific work, and to all our festival organizers for their creativity and ingenuity,” Mayor Mark Sutcliffe said. The city says Ottawa Tourism will administer the Major Festivals Fund and will develop the criteria to ensure the funds are used to support tourism and grow the local economy. The money will come from a proposed one per cent increase in the Municipal Accommodation Tax in 2026, which is a tax on overnight visitation to the city administered by hotels and other accommodation properties. A portion of the tax increase will also go toward the Lansdowne 2.0 project. “It’s an amazing opportunity for the festivals to really establish Ottawa on a bigger scale and recognize that there’s some huge generators in this city that can draw people into town and generate lots of economic impact,” said Ottawa Bluesfest executive and artistic director Mark Monahan. Wednesay’s announcement also included other initiatives for Ottawa’s festival economy including the development of a special constable unit to help local festivals manage traffic, and a “festival strategy refresh” the city says is dedicated to advocating at all government levels and modernizing festival tools and resources. The city will also work with festivals to advance green initiatives through partnerships with groups such as ReUse Ottawa, Tablée des Chefs, and EnviroCentre. The draft 2026 budget was presented to Ottawa City Council last week and includes a 3.75 per cent property tax increase for city services next year, along with higher user fees for transit, recreation, parking and water and garbage services. Councillors and city staff are taking the draft budget to residents for public consultation, and standing committees and boards are voting on their respective budgets over the next two weeks. Council will vote to finalize the budget on Dec. 10.
