Your town, in plain words
A clear, checkable guide to Northern Bruce Peninsula's budget, taxes and council decisions. A municipality at the northern tip of the Bruce Peninsula in Bruce County, with a mayor, a deputy mayor and three councillors. Every figure links back to the public record.
Follow Northern Bruce Peninsula in one tapWhere it goes
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.
+58%roads and snow, 2019 to 2024
Northern Bruce Peninsula spent $1.9M on roads and snow in 2019 and $3.0M in 2024. Prices only went up about 18% in that time. Only 4 of 50 similar towns had faster growth here.
Found automatically from the town's financial reports · 3 sources
December 22, 2025the date on the auditor's report in both the 2023 and the 2024 statements
An audit is a check of the town's books by an outside accountant. The auditor signs a report saying whether the statements are fair. The auditor's report in the posted 2024 statements is dated December 22, 2025. The auditor's report in the posted 2023 statements has the same date, which is almost two years after the end of 2023. For 2022, the earlier auditor, BDO Canada LLP, wrote its report to council on June 12, 2023. The statements for 2023 and 2024 are signed by a different firm, MNP LLP. We did not find statements for 2025 on the Municipality's website.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 3 sources
$6,056,064spent on capital assets in 2024, against a budget of $12,424,855
Capital spending is money spent on things that last, such as roads, buildings and vehicles. The 2024 budget planned $12,424,855 of capital purchases and the statements show $6,056,064. The 2023 budget planned $12,155,181 and the statements show $4,175,801. Capital grants (money from other governments for those projects) were budgeted at $3,443,574 for 2024 and the statements show $542,791. As a result the planned annual surplus of $7,667,909 for 2024 came out at $2,264,138 on the statements. The Municipality's budget note shows how the budget was put together, but we did not find an explanation of why the projects did not go ahead.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 3 sources
$10,000,000the cap council set on construction, not counting HST and architect fees
Council capped the Lion's Head arena project at $10,000,000, not counting HST and architect fees. The Municipality's project page says it secured $4.9 million in funding in 2020. The 2023 statements said the design tender cost of $1,121,220 would be completed in 2024 at a cost of $566,940. The 2024 statements say the project's costs "are anticipated to be incurred in 2026". At the end of 2024 the Municipality held reserves for capital purposes of $11,603,140. We did not find a published plan that says how much of the $10,000,000 would come from grants, from reserves or from borrowing.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 5 sources
$111,973spent on legal and consulting fees in 2023, against a budget of $80,000
In the adopted 2024 budget, the administration line for "Legal/Consulting Fees" shows actual spending of $118,324 in 2020, $120,480 in 2021 and $97,260 in 2022. The 2023 budget was $80,000 and spending was $111,973. The 2024 budget is again $80,000. The "Audit" line shows a 2023 budget of $40,000 and 2023 spending of $57,254, with 2024 budgeted at $45,000. The 2023 figures were not yet audited when the budget was adopted.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 1 source
$170,345total for the council lines in the 2024 budget, shown as up 38.49%
The 2024 budget has one line for the whole of council (not for any one member). Its "Remuneration" line was budgeted at $90,000 for 2023, came in at $108,835 and is budgeted at $130,345 for 2024. With benefits, a new cell phones line and the other council lines, the total printed for council is $170,345, up 38.49%. We did not find a council pay and expenses statement on the Municipality's website to see how the total is split.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 1 source
+63%running the town office, 2019 to 2024
Northern Bruce Peninsula spent $1.3M on running the town office in 2019 and $2.1M in 2024. Prices only went up about 18% in that time. Only 10 of 50 similar towns had faster growth here.
Found automatically from the town's financial reports · 3 sources
$987,157investment income in 2024, against a budget of $554,000
The town earns interest on its bank balance and savings. The 2024 budget planned $554,000 of investment income. The statements show $987,157 for 2024 and $979,732 for 2023. Short-term accommodation fees (fees for rentals such as cottages) were budgeted at $355,000 and came in at $533,473.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 2 sources
$2,690,940owed to the Municipality as trade and other receivables at the end of 2024, up from $1,763,809
At the end of 2024 the Municipality was owed $1,543,804 in taxes, up from $1,185,689, and $2,690,940 in trade and other receivables (bills and grants owed to it), up from $1,763,809. Its cash fell from $16,607,633 to $11,603,272 over the year.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 2 sources
2023 or 2026two end dates for the same appointment on the Municipality's website
The Integrity Commissioner is the independent person who looks into complaints about council members' conduct. The Municipality's council page says Aird & Berlis LLP was appointed from September 26, 2022 to December 31, 2026. The by-law the Municipality posts for that appointment, By-law No. 2022-83, says it is "effective until December 31, 2023".
Found by reading the town's own documents · 2 sources
2024 tax year · Northern Bruce Peninsula, Ontario
Enter your home's assessed value to see roughly what you pay in property tax each year, who gets it, and what Northern Bruce Peninsula'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 Northern Bruce Peninsula.
a year in property tax, at 2024 rates
Northern Bruce Peninsula 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 Northern Bruce Peninsula'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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