Your town, in plain words
A clear, checkable guide to Lakeshore's budget, taxes and council decisions. A municipality in Essex County, on the south shore of Lake St. Clair near Windsor, with a mayor, a deputy mayor and six ward councillors. Every figure links back to the public record.
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Questions worth asking
Each one is a question, not an accusation. Every one lists ordinary reasons it could be true, and the documents it comes from.
$4,155per home on long-term debt, 2024
Lakeshore spent about $4,155 per home on long-term debt in 2024. The typical similar town spent $1,209. None of the 22 similar towns spent more.
Found automatically from the town's financial reports · 1 source
August 11, 2026date of the auditor's report on the 2024 statements
Audited financial statements are the yearly report card on a town's money, checked by an outside auditor. Lakeshore's auditor, KPMG LLP, dated its report on the 2022 statements September 10, 2024, on the 2023 statements September 30, 2025, and on the 2024 statements August 11, 2026. Each is about twenty months after the year it covers. On October 5, 2026, the newest statements posted on the Municipality's website were for 2024. The 2025 statements were not posted. All three reports say the statements "present fairly" the Municipality's position.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 5 sources
$62,132,210debentures payable at the end of 2024, up from $19,356,622
Debentures are long-term loans repaid in instalments with interest. In 2024 the Municipality issued $45,281,428 of new long-term debt. Total debentures payable went from $19,356,622 to $62,132,210. The statements split the debt by who repays it. The part to be repaid from wastewater rates went from $3,738,632 to $48,541,588. That is the charge residents pay on the sewer part of their water bill. We did not find, in the documents we could read, a note saying which project the money was for.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 4 sources
$31,140,748negative balance of the wastewater reserve fund at the end of 2023
A reserve fund is savings put aside for a named purpose. The statements' schedule of reserve funds shows the wastewater fund owed more than it held: (19,632,531) at the end of 2022 and (31,140,748) at the end of 2023. In 2024 the same schedule shows $51,199,034 moved in from operations, and an ending balance of 14,971,462. The same year the Municipality issued $45,281,428 of new debt, and the schedule of accumulated surplus shows a line, "Municipal Debt - Recoverable", of (45,281,428). We worked out that the $51,199,034 is close to the new debt plus other wastewater money, but the statements do not say so.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 3 sources
+99%running the town office, 2019 to 2024
Lakeshore spent $4.4M on running the town office in 2019 and $8.8M in 2024. Prices only went up about 18% in that time. Only 3 of 22 similar towns had faster growth here.
Found automatically from the town's financial reports · 3 sources
$132,094,372cash and temporary investments at the end of 2024
At the end of 2024 the statements show cash and temporary investments of $132,094,372, up from $88,565,703. Over the same year the Municipality borrowed $45,281,428. The schedule of reserves and reserve funds totals 125,605,057, and deferred revenue (money received for a set purpose, such as development charges) is $12,704,968. Added together, those two are more than the cash (worked out by us), which means the cash is mostly spoken for. Investment income was $4,370,956.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 3 sources
$10,416,490transportation spending in the 2024 statements, against a budget column of $5,562,562
In the 2024 statement of operations, transportation services were budgeted at $5,562,562 and actual spending is $10,416,490. Environmental services were budgeted at $17,515,958 and actual is $22,442,799. Recreation and cultural services were budgeted at $6,938,909 and actual is $10,773,982. The Municipality has explained it: note 15 says the budget "expensed all tangible capital expenditures rather than including amortization expense". Amortization is the yearly share of the cost of long-lived assets. The segment schedule shows amortization of 5,070,144 for transportation, 4,216,831 for environmental services and 2,972,669 for recreation. After taking that out, we worked out that transportation is under its budget and the other two are much closer to it.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 3 sources
10,994,495amortization in the cash flow statement, against 12,875,696 in the net financial assets statement
The statement of cash flows shows amortization of tangible capital assets of 10,994,495. The statement of change in net financial assets shows 12,875,696 for the same item. Schedule 1 shows 12,873,252. The cash flow statement's total of 32,052,530 adds up with the lower figure, so the difference sits in another line (worked out by us). Separately, note 15 says Council adopted the budget on "February 15, 2024" in one sentence and "February 27, 2024" two sentences later.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 4 sources
1.76 per centthe property tax rate increase Council adopted for 2026, down from a proposed 4 per cent
The Municipality's Budget and Finances page lists budgets up to 2023 as PDF books. For 2024, 2025 and 2026 the page links an interactive web application. We could not read figures out of it, so this pack has no 2026 budget figures except those the Municipality printed in its news releases: the draft showed total expenditures of $65.7 million, up from $64.1 million in 2025, and a 4 per cent tax rate increase. On December 4, 2025, Council cut that to 1.76 per cent and, among other changes, removed the Council wage increase for cost-of-living adjustment.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 5 sources
June 30, 2022end of the last Integrity Commissioner report posted on the Municipality's page
An Integrity Commissioner investigates complaints that a council member broke the code of conduct and gives members advice. Lakeshore's Integrity Commissioner page lists reports for October 2020 to June 30, 2022, from the earlier commissioner. The page says the current commissioner, a firm, was appointed effective July 1, 2022. We found no report from the firm on the page. The last report we read says there were "no new Complaints" in the first half of 2022. We do not know whether there have been complaints since.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 2 sources
$297per home on garbage, dump and recycling, 2024
Lakeshore spent about $297 per home on garbage, dump and recycling in 2024. The typical similar town spent $0. None of the 22 similar towns spent more.
Found automatically from the town's financial reports · 1 source
2024 tax year · Lakeshore, Ontario
Enter your home's assessed value to see roughly what you pay in property tax each year, who gets it, and what Lakeshore's share pays for.
Ontario still uses property values from January 1, 2016 for tax, so your assessed value is probably well below what your home would sell for today.
It is on your property assessment notice from MPAC, and on your tax bill. We filled in the typical value in Lakeshore.
a year in property tax, at 2024 rates
Lakeshore council sets only its own share. County or region sets its share, the Province sets the school rate.
An estimate. It uses the residential tax rate, and splits Lakeshore's share by what each service cost in 2024 after its own fees and grants (for example, water bills pay for much of a water system). Real bills also depend on your property class, local charges and any rebates.
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Each number links to the public document it came from. Check it yourself.
We ask questions. Every one lists ordinary reasons a number could look odd.
Towns are only compared with places of a similar size and kind, from the same yearly reports.
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