Your town, in plain words
A clear, checkable guide to The Archipelago's budget, taxes and council decisions. A township of several thousand islands and inland lakes on the east coast of Georgian Bay, in the District of Parry Sound, with a reeve and ten 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.
+89%running the town office, 2019 to 2024
The Archipelago spent $1.9M on running the town office in 2019 and $3.6M in 2024. Prices only went up about 18% in that time. Only 3 of 43 similar towns had faster growth here.
Found automatically from the town's financial reports · 3 sources
$549,992spent in 2025 on South roads overhead and administration, against a budget of $422,697
The Township pays for roads in two areas, North and South. In each, one line is "Overhead & Administration" (the share of general costs charged to roads). For the South, it was budgeted at $422,697 for 2025 and came in at $549,992. For the North, it was budgeted at $280,997 and came in at $387,551. The same happened in 2024. Added together, the two areas were about $233,849 over budget on this line in 2025 and about $115,735 over in 2024 (worked out by us). The 2026 budget raises the line again, to $471,536 (South) and $306,890 (North). We did not find the Township's explanation in the budget book.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 2 sources
$367,304paid in 2025, against a budget of $214,839
Belvedere Heights is a home for the aged in Parry Sound that the Township helps pay for through a yearly levy (a charge set by the body that runs it). The 2025 budget was $214,839 and the actual was $367,304. In 2024 the budget was $214,376; the table's "Transfers-Levy" row shows 214,376 but its total shows $297,310, so we could not tell which is right for 2024. The 2026 budget returns to $211,936. We did not find an explanation in the budget book.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 2 sources
$60,479spent in 2025 on HR lawyer fees, against a budget of $6,000
Under Administration, the budget book has separate lines for human-resources (HR) professional services. "Professional Services-HR Lawyer" was budgeted at $6,000 in both 2024 and 2025. It came in at $65,028 in 2024 and $60,479 in 2025. In 2024 "Professional Services-HR Cons." (consultants) was budgeted at $10,000 and came in at $55,629, and "Professional Services-HR Studies" was budgeted at $25,000 and came in at $36,325. The 2026 budget sets the lawyer line at $8,000 and the studies line at $35,000. The budget book says an organizational review was done in 2023 and the new structure was put in place in 2024 and revised in 2025.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 2 sources
1,228,973interest and treasury revenue in 2025, against a budget of 791,912
Under Administration, "Interest & Treasury Revenues" were budgeted at 665,000 for 2024 and came in at 1,452,319. For 2025 they were budgeted at 791,912 and came in at 1,228,973. The 2026 budget is 869,000. Waste grants also came in above budget in 2025: 340,078 against 302,400 in the North and 514,444 against 453,600 in the South. Revenue above budget can mean the budget asks for more tax than it needs.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 3 sources
$756,000of the 2026 capital budget of $1,038,220 is borrowed from the Township's own reserves
A reserve is money set aside for later. For 2026 the capital budget is $1,038,220. Of that, $756,000 is "Borrow from Reserves" and $282,220 is Municipal Modernization Funding (a provincial grant). The book says 73% of the funding is borrowed from reserves and that the principal and interest are paid back through the operating budget over the life of the asset. It also says the Township is reviewing its reserves. Contributions to reserves are budgeted at 518,606 for 2026, up from 444,912.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 3 sources
1.3%average increase in the 2026 tax rate, per the budget
The Township pays levies (charges) to outside bodies for health, social services and policing. The 2026 budget says these rose 5.4%, about $154,000 more. It says the provincial grant that offsets them (OMPF) rose 12%, so the net cost of external services falls 2.2%. Costs the Township controls rise 1.7%, and the average tax rate rises 1.3% (1.5% in the North, 1.2% in the South). The Township has already given this explanation; we raise it so readers can see it.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 3 sources
$1,546spent on connectivity in 2025, against a budget of $57,000
The Connectivity budget lists "Tower Repairs & Maintenance" at 25,000 for both 2024 and 2025 with nothing spent, and "Broadband Consultants" at 25,000 for 2024 (1,832 spent) and 20,000 for 2025 (nothing shown as spent). Total connectivity expenditures were budgeted at $57,500 and $57,000 and came in at $2,117 and $1,546. The 2026 budget lowers the lines to 10,000 each. Money not spent is good for taxpayers, so this is context.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 1 source
2024 tax year · The Archipelago, Ontario
Enter your home's assessed value to see roughly what you pay in property tax each year, who gets it, and what The Archipelago'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 The Archipelago.
a year in property tax, at 2024 rates
The Archipelago council sets only its own share. the Province sets the school rate.
An estimate. It uses the residential tax rate, and splits The Archipelago'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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