Written By David Gomez, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
SOUTHWEST MIDDLESEX - Public and council feedback on municipal priorities for 2026 was presented to council during its December 17 meeting, as councillors reviewed the results of two separate budget surveys intended to inform the upcoming budget process.
CAO Amanda Gubbels introduced the public budget survey results, noting that the survey was issued in October and remained open through October and November. “There were 61 responses, and the survey trends and data are included in the report,” she said. The number of responses was down from 84 in the previous year.
Deputy Mayor Mike Sholdice asked whether it was worthwhile for staff to continue conducting the survey annually given the limited response. Gubbels responded that public consultation remains a best practice in municipal budgeting. “There are tidbits from the survey, even with a limited response, that do help guide staff and council in terms of resources being input into the budget,” she said, adding that the survey is not resource-intensive to manage.
According to the public survey summary, residents placed high importance on core services such as fire protection, road maintenance, winter control, drinking water, wastewater services and stormwater management. At the same time, overall satisfaction with municipal services declined compared to the previous year, with more respondents expressing neutrality or dissatisfaction, particularly around affordability, infrastructure maintenance and customer service responsiveness. The survey also showed a stronger preference for tax stability, with many respondents favouring maintaining current tax levels or using reserves rather than increasing taxes.
Council also reviewed the results of a separate budget survey completed by members of council. Gubbels explained that the council survey mirrored many of the public questions to allow for comparison.
During the discussion, Councillor Martin Vink questioned why the council survey appeared to reflect nine responses when there are only eight members of council. Gubbels explained that the survey was anonymous and that a duplicate submission may have occurred. “Rather than manipulate the data… I have just provided what I received,” she said, adding that the additional response did not appear to undermine the overall alignment in council feedback.
Councillor Mark McGill supported keeping the two surveys separate, saying it ensured public input was not diluted by council responses.
Both reports were received for information, with council directing staff to use the feedback to inform the development of the proposed 2026 municipal budget.
