Calgary city councillors took in a second day of public submissions with continued calls for investment in things like housing, recreation, and transit, however, some councillors remain committed to bringing property taxes in line first.

Day two of the 2026 Calgary budget deliberations wrapped up most of the public submissions, and it’s expected that councillors will begin questions of administration on Wednesday.

Councillors heard from multiple young soccer players, along with the head of the Calgary Minor Soccer Association, with stories of early playing times or driving across the city to find field times.

“Here’s the hard truth: We’re at a breaking point for field capacity. Participation is at an all-time high, growing nearly 15 per cent year-over-year for the past three consecutive years, supported by only three indoor public facilities,” said Carlo Bruneau, executive director of the Calgary Minor Soccer Association.

“Demand has outpaced supply. We’ve had to reduce the number of games, the length of games, and increased roster sizes.”

Bruneau said that they have kids practicing on hardwood floors in gyms or overloaded turf fields with eight teams at a time in order to accommodate the demand.

“If we don’t act, here’s the future we risk: Kids locked out, kids priced out, kids sitting at home on screens, kids watching other kids play because there isn’t room for them,” Bruneau said.  

“This is not the Calgary we aspire to be, the Calgary our kids deserve.”

Bruneau’s plea came the day after city cricketers came out in force to demonstrate their need for more space.

Recreation, affordable housing and support for transit have been the major themes thus far in Calgary’s budget deliberations. Even public safety mentions have been wrapped up in pleas for more housing in the city.

Balancing citizens’ needs with responsible governance

Ward 1 Coun. Kim Tyers, who posted to X that she opposes the proposed $38 million for climate and environment program spending and $40 million for downtown office-to-residential conversions, told reporters on Tuesday that the focus needs to be on reducing the cost of living for Calgarians.

“I’ve looked through the budget. There’s a few things I think are nice to have, but not necessary for what the city needs to do – our climate activism department as well as downtown residential conversions,” she said.

When asked about the number of public presenters wanting more cash for city projects, contrasted with her desire to cut taxes, Coun. Tyers said it was summed up in one of Monday’s panels.

“I think that’s a really interesting question, because in one of the panels we had, the people who have all the money in the world, but they want us to subsidize them to build these developments downtown,” she said.

“On the same panel, you have Indigenous housing nonprofit organizations who require funding, but they’re actually presenting solutions to the city that if we put money there, we’re going to receive housing.”

Mayor Jeromy Farkas said there’s a balance to be struck between the many wants of citizens and the financial capacity of the city, plus the desire to maintain homeowner affordability.

“We think of budgeting as a zero-sum game, but it really isn’t,” Farkas said.

“So, when we think about partnerships, when we think about opportunities, working with both the nonprofit sector and private sector, there’s a lot of ways that we can unlock more resources rather than just think about the government going alone.

“That’s really the philosophy of things like the downtown conversion incentive program. It’s unlocking more financial contributions from the private sector.”

Day three of budget deliberations will largely be focused on councillor questions of administration and the crafting of potential amendments to this year’s budget. Day four will be debate and potential finalization. Anything left over will go to Day five.

Right now, the proposed combined property tax increase is 3.6 per cent, with homeowners looking at a 5.8 per cent hike and businesses looking at 1.3 per cent.

Mayor Farkas said that he’d like to get the increase to Calgary homeowners cut in half.