December 30, 2025
RED FM News Desk
Jeromy Farkas has begun his tenure as Calgary’s mayor with what supporters describe as the strongest opening by a new mayor in decades.
Within days of taking office, Farkas moved to establish a more disciplined city council, one he says will speak with moral clarity — particularly in confronting rising antisemitism. Early signals from the new mayor’s office suggest a break from the governing style of recent years.
One of Farkas’s first and most notable actions was setting the city’s property tax increase at 1.6 per cent — below the national inflation rate and far lower than what city administrators had argued was possible. Officials had previously warned that a minimum increase of 3.6 per cent was required to avoid serious impacts to civic services.
Throughout the mayoralty of Jyoti Gondek, Calgarians were repeatedly told that meaningful tax relief was impossible without cuts. In 2023, property taxes rose by 7.5 per cent, reinforcing public frustration over affordability.
This year, however, council approved a different approach, reallocating $50 million from the city’s investment account to offset costs. The fund stood at roughly $7 billion at the end of 2024.
Farkas and his allies argue the move demonstrates that previous councils had options all along, and that taxpayers were burdened with higher taxes despite the city holding significant financial reserves.
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