Cuts may soon be on the way at Vancouver City Hall, where officials have announced a staggering budget shortfall.
Mayor Gregor Robertson confirmed Monday evening that the city will be facing a $61-million shortfall next year.
"This is a combination of the global recession and the development revenues dropping of a cliff, basically," Robertson said.
The city says development permit revenues are down 50 per cent from last year, a loss of about $12.5 million.
Robertson confirms that job cuts are a likely solution to the shortfall, and tax hikes and user fees are also being considered.
"At this point, we're putting everything on the table," he said.
City manager Penny Ballem says the implementation of the new harmonized sales tax (HST) will hit the city hard in the pocketbook, as well as wage increases promised during 2007 job contracts.
Ballem says the city will try to consolidate duplicate services in hopes the city can deliver them in a more streamlined and efficient way.
"We have already identified areas where we can achieve significant savings with minimal impacts on citizens," she said.
A press conference is scheduled Tuesday morning to outline the cost-cutting measures.
With a report from CTV British Columbia's Maria Weisgarber
