Northern Ontario township to shut down all municipal services next month due to financial crisis

The tiny northeastern Ontario township of Fauquier-Strickland, located connected Highway 11 near Kapuskasing, says it volition cease each municipal services arsenic of Aug. 1, owed to a $2.5-million operating deficit.

The municipality of 467 people, according to the 2021 census, said successful a quality merchandise that the alternate to shutting down municipal services would beryllium to enforce a 190 to 230 per cent spot taxation summation for each residents.

That taxation summation would person tripled astir taxation bills and perchance forced families from their homes.

"Despite ongoing requests for provincial involution made to the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing, nary factual assistance oregon absorption has been provided," the quality merchandise said.

"A missive sent to Minister Robert Flack on July 2, 2025, requesting contiguous ministerial involution has received nary substantive response."

In an email to CBC News, Alexandra Sanita, a spokesperson for Flack, said the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing is "actively engaging with the Township of Fauquier-Strickland connected their section challenges."

Fauquier-Strickland said its fiscal situation is owed to accumulated operating deficits that person depleted each operating and reserve funds.

Mayor Madeleine Tremblay said upgrades to the municipality's h2o filtration strategy during the COVID-19 pandemic went implicit budget, leaving the tiny assemblage with a measure for $1 million.

Tremblay said galore different tiny municipalities successful Ontario are facing akin challenges owed to rising costs and a tiny taxation basal to screen basal operations.

"We're 1 of the first, I would say. And I deliberation that's wherefore the curate is hesitant to springiness america an answer," she said.

Tremblay said the township is looking into options to proceed garbage postulation if it has to unopen down municipal services by Aug. 1, erstwhile the 5 township employees would beryllium laid off. 

She said residents volition inactive get entree to hydro and h2o if the section authorities ends up shutting down.

No currency reserves

"The municipality has been operating with zero currency reserves for implicit a year, relying heavy connected recognition to money ongoing operations," a merchandise from the township said. 

Fauquier-Strickland assembly accrued spot taxes by 26 per cent past twelvemonth to assistance code the fiscal problem.

Tremblay said galore of the township's residents are connected fixed incomes, and would find it challenging to wage further spot taxes.

Fauquier-Strickland said it's requesting contiguous involution from Ontario's Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing, including the assignment of a municipal supervisor oregon administrator, and immoderate exigency fiscal assistance.

Not since the Great Depression

Zachary Spicer, an subordinate prof astatine York University's School of Public Policy Administration, told CBC News a municipal bankruptcy successful Ontario hasn't happened since the Great Depression, astir 100 years ago.

"Reading the property release, it seems to maine similar this is truly conscionable the municipality benignant of waving the achromatic emblem and being like, 'You know, the state does thing oregon similar we're done,'" helium said.

Spicer said the crushed galore Ontario municipalities were amalgamated successful the aboriginal 2000s was due to the fact that they were nary longer financially viable connected their own.

He said helium expects the state to instrumentality enactment earlier the township is forced to unopen down municipal services.

"The state doesn't let things similar this to benignant of hap without a crippled plan," helium said.

"So I fishy determination is simply a benignant of an exigency interruption solid benignant of program oregon script that the state has."

In the abbreviated term, Spicer said the provincial effect could see immoderate exigency backing to support municipal services running.

Over the longer term, helium said determination volition apt beryllium conversations astir amalgamating with adjacent municipalities on Highway 11, since galore tiny towns crossed Ontario are also successful atrocious fiscal shape.

"It's pugnacious and they've been sounding the alarm for the past 10 to 15 years," helium said.

If Fauquier-Strickland is forced to unopen down municipal services by Aug. 1, Spicer said helium wouldn't expect determination to beryllium an work for residents to proceed paying their spot taxes.

Although helium said determination are apt homeowners who person already paid their taxes for the year.