Mill rate adjustments ensures tourism operators share more of the cost to grow tourism; RCMP, expanded firefighting hours and transit costs driving core service increases

The Resort Municipality of Whistler will bring in a 6.9-per-cent tax increase for 2026 with an updated budget that allocates more of the tax base to growing the tourism economy. 

Through Committee of the Whole discussions in November and December, Council received and adjusted staff’s proposed draft budget. Among the recommendations adopted, was a request to have Class 8 Properties invest more in maintaining and growing municipal infrastructure. The new mill rate will bring the percentage of tax contributed by Class 8 operators from three to five per cent of total tax revenues. 

“Coming out of the COVID health pandemic, our municipality has reimagined how we would like to manage our destination and grow our main industry,” says Mayor Jack Crompton. “This budget aims to grow transit, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, finds additional funds to support tourism growth and puts money aside to pay for costs associated with a growing community with aging infrastructure.” 
 
Whistler’s population is expected to surpass 15,000 residents in the 2026 Canadian Census. The 2025 and 2026 budgets contemplate three big rocks associated with this growing population:  

1. the need to expand firefighting hours;  

2. the need to pay a higher portion of RCMP service costs, as mandated under federal contract; and 

3. increased investment in the transit system to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and move beyond the car, in line with national municipal commitments.  

This budget allocates $98,000 previously used to fund free weekend transit towards reducing the cost of select local transit passes. It adds $125,000 in 2026 and $675,000 in 2027 to fund 24-hour fire service at the Spring Creek Firehall, worth a 0.25 per cent tax increase for residential properties and 0.45 per cent tax increase for recreation class properties for 2026. And it plans for the community’s share of RCMP costs to grow from 70 to 90 per cent of the total cost, per federal contract, in 2027. 

Municipal budgets lay out how property taxes, fees and charges, and funding from other levels of government will fund our core community programming and services, infrastructure (like roads, water, solid waste and sewage) and managing municipal assets (like parks, trails and buildings). The process also requires staff to detail the unique projects which will be executed in the given year.  Highlights for 2026 include: 

• Meadow Park: Phase 1 redevelopment of the new splash park, playground and Valley Trail enhancements (provincially funded with Resort Municipal Initiative funds) 

• Parks: Park rehabilitation, trail maintenance and reconstruction, recreational bridge replacements, and Valley Trail reconstructions/repairs (RMI funds) 

• Recreation: New men’s changeroom lockers at Meadow Park Sports Centre, and funds to investigate adding showers to the arena multipurpose room to better accommodate diverse user groups, and minor updates to the fitness centre  

• Village: Concrete repairs in the Whistler Village Land Co Ltd. parkades  

• Climate Mitigation and Adaptation: Exterior window replacement and design of heat recovery loop system for energy efficiency at Meadow Park Sports Centre, and funds to replace the pool air conditioner  

• Active Transportation: New initiatives like secure bike parking, covered Village bike shelters, and development of an active transportation network plan ($25,000 in grants secured to support this work) 

• Transit: Funding for monthly passes for locals, and an exploration of increasing Day Lot rates to fund transit (partnership with Whistler Blackcomb) 

• Corporate Initiatives and Engagement: Smart Tourism Vision document to co-create the RMOW Destination Management/Stewardship Plan through community workshops, engagement sessions, and collaborative planning 

With a 6.9-per-cent tax increase for homeowners, a home assessed at $500,000 would pay roughly $50 more in annual property taxes; $1 million would pay roughly $100 more; and a home assessed at $4 million would pay roughly $400 more. Municipalities collect taxes and fees, including those on behalf of other external agencies, through tax notices distributed in late spring. The municipal portion of your tax bill is approximately 50 per cent for the coming year, with provincial school fees and other government agencies making up the rest. 

In 2026, Whistler’s municipal budget reflects $107 million in revenues and $107 million in general fund expenditures, including $16 million in reserve contributions.  By law, municipalities must balance their budgets each year, meaning we plan to spend only what we can responsibly afford. 

Having received Guidelines on how to draft the 2026 Five-year Budget Bylaw from Council, municipal staff will prepare the bylaw for presentation in January.