Not the full picture. Built from public records, which leave things out.Read by hand, Oct 2026DetailsThis is built from public records, which leave a lot out, and some of it may be wrong or out of date. Check the sources, and tell us if you spot a mistake. What this site can't tell you Read by hand. We read Springwater's own documents for this site in October 2026; the Sources page lists which ones. The comparisons with other places still come from the Province's yearly reports.
A clear, checkable guide to Springwater's budget, taxes and council decisions. A township in Simcoe County, north of Barrie, with a mayor, a deputy mayor and five ward councillors. The Mayor holds strong-mayor powers. Every figure links back to the public record.
$22,930,000total compensation from Barrie, payable 2026 to 2030, for land that pays about $158,096.47 a year in tax
On January 1, 2026 about 1,216 hectares of Springwater moved to the City of Barrie by a provincial law. The Township's 2024 statements say Barrie will pay it $22,930,000 over five years, 2026 to 2030. The agreement attached to the by-law says the land brings in about $158,096.47 a year in tax today, and sets pay at $15,000 for each developable acre, with $5,000,000 due on January 1, 2026. Separately it sets $170,000 a year ($850,000 in total) that must go to economic development. Worked out by us: $22,930,000 less $850,000 is $22,080,000, and $22,930,000 is about 145 years of the tax the land pays now. We did not find a plan for the money in the budget book we read, which was written before the deal was signed.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 4 sources
5vetoes by the Mayor between November 7, 2025 and February 6, 2026
Since May 1, 2025 the Mayor has strong-mayor powers, which let her veto parts of Council's by-laws if she thinks they could get in the way of provincial housing goals. The Township's page lists five vetoes between November 7, 2025 and February 6, 2026. Three (November 7, 12 and 13) cancelled Council resolutions telling its law firm to take legal action over the Mayor's use of those powers on the Barrie boundary. One (December 8) cancelled a $100,000 road paving amendment to the budget. The last (February 6) cancelled Council's direction to pay a law firm invoice. The documents we read do not say how much was billed.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 5 sources
Audited statements are the independent check on a town's books. Springwater's posted 2023 statements are signed by the auditor on January 21, 2026, more than two years after year end. The 2024 statements are signed June 5, 2026, about 17 months after year end (by our count, from December 31, 2024 to June 5, 2026). The 2025 statements were not posted when we looked on October 5, 2026. We do not know whether the January 2026 date for 2023 is a first issue or a re-issue.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 3 sources
$667,833one-time draw from the Tax Rate Stabilization Reserve in the 2026 proposed budget
The Mayor's proposed 2026 budget raises the Township's part of the property tax by 7.97%, or $243.60 a year on a typical $497,000 home counting the County's share too. That is after taking $667,833 from the Tax Rate Stabilization Reserve (a savings account for smoothing tax increases). That draw is worth 3.16 percentage points. Worked out by us, without it the Township's increase would have been about 11.13%. The budget says the draw is one-time, to cover a short-term fall in growth. Over 2017 to 2025 the Township's increase averaged 2.30% a year.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 5 sources
$19,333,104debt in the 2026 capital funding table, against $8,850,950 on the debt page
At the end of 2024 the Township owed $1,515,942 on long-term loans and held cash of $26,004,205 and investments of $14,034,237. The 2026 budget's debt page says it expects about $8.9 million of new debt, listed as $8,850,950. The 2026 capital plan's funding table shows debt of $19,333,104. The two numbers are not explained next to each other. The budget notes that debt servicing in the operating budget rises from $321,025 to $841,735 between the 2025 approved and 2026 base budgets.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 5 sources
$15,314,4882026 base salaries and benefits, against $14,114,517 approved for 2025 (difference worked out by us)
The tax supported budget lists Salaries and Benefits at $14,114,517 for 2025 (approved) and $15,314,488 for 2026 (base), before new positions. Worked out by us, that is $1,199,971 more, or 8.5%. New positions add $236,322 on top, for $15,550,810. The budget says a cost-of-living adjustment is included and a market review of non-union pay was done in 2025. It does not give a dollar breakdown of the $1,199,971. In 2024 the audited statements show salaries and benefits of $12,629,976, below a budget of $13,562,917.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 4 sources
Springwater spent $3.8M on roads and snow in 2019 and $5.8M in 2024. Prices only went up about 18% in that time. Only 9 of 46 similar towns had faster growth here.
Found automatically from the town's financial reports · 3 sources
The Integrity Commissioner, who investigates complaints against council members, issued a report dated June 30, 2026 on a complaint by a landowner group about remarks the Mayor made in fall 2025. It found that Mayor Jennifer Coughlin contravened section 4 of the Code of Conduct, which requires members to treat people with respect. The Commissioner did not find that her questions about the group's finances broke the Code. He recommended a reprimand. The Township says Council adopted it "in the form of a meaningful public apology". We did not find a record of the apology.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 2 sources
$1,898,492investment income in 2024, against a budget of $600,000
In 2024 the Township budgeted $600,000 of investment income and recorded $1,898,492 (2023: $2,153,838). The audited annual surplus was $3,346,538, against $17,857,833 in the statement's budget column. The budget note explains that gap: the budget column adds capital spending and development charges back. The Township credited $652,296 of interest to its restricted reserve funds. For 2026 the proposed budget has investment and interest income of $1,105,000.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 4 sources
2024 tax year · Springwater, Ontario
Your tax bill, worked out.
Enter your home's assessed value to see roughly what you pay in property tax each year, who gets it, and what Springwater'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 Springwater.
An estimate. It uses the residential tax rate, and splits Springwater'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.
How Springwater's share of the bill compares with similar towns
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