2026 BUDGET and 2026-2028 PTI: Saint-Lambert announces a freeze on local taxes and major investments in its road infrastructure, parks, and sports facilities.

At a special meeting held this evening, the members of the Saint-Lambert City Council unanimously adopted the 2026 operating budget and the 2026–2028 Three-Year Capital Expenditure Plan, which sets out the priority projects and investments that will meet the evolving needs of the population.

Operating budget

The adopted operating budget totals $76,763,359, an increase of 3.42% compared to 2025. Mayor Blancquaert also announced that he is honoring his election commitment and confirmed a freeze on local taxes for 2026, after several years of successive increases.

“This freeze is a concrete demonstration of the council's commitment to optimizing organizational practices in order to provide quality services at the best possible cost to Lambertois taxpayers,” he said.

For residences, this translates into a tax rate of $0.7507 per $100 of assessed value, compared to $0.7270 in 2025. This increase is due to a 6.42% rise in taxation for services provided by the Longueuil agglomeration and the Montreal Metropolitan Community. Combined with the local tax freeze, the total increase for Lambertois residents is 3.27%.

In concrete terms, this means that for an average-sized residential property valued at $1,082,569, an increase of $257 for the year 2026 is to be expected. The local freeze therefore offsets the increase in the Longueuil agglomeration's share to arrive at a reasonable increase for the population.

With this tax freeze, the new council hopes to ease the financial pressure on Lambertois residents due to rising costs in all sectors, particularly energy and food.

"We have decided to refocus the City's activities on its core mission, which is to serve the population. This means we will be investing more in our health, road, and recreational infrastructure. This approach requires paying particular attention to budgetary discipline. To this end, it has been decided not to fill the communications agent position, which has been vacant for several weeks. This will be an opportunity to review the communications services offered. Throughout our term of office, we will continue to focus on ways to optimize services to citizens," explains the mayor.

Investments 2026-2028

In addition, council members adopted the 2026-2028 Three-Year Capital Expenditure Plan, set at $73,835,000. Given their obsolescence, the municipal workshops will be completely renovated thanks to a $16 million investment provided for in the PTI. An additional $13.2 million will also be invested in the refurbishment of parks and recreational facilities. In recent months, citizens have strongly emphasized the need to upgrade our sports facilities. We have listened to them, and here are some of the investments planned for the coming years:

• Renovation of Saint-Denis Park: $300,000
• Renovation of Upper Edison Park: $400,000
• Renovation of the multisport surface at Préville Park: $470,000
• Reconstruction of the Préville swimming pool: $4.2 million
• Lighting at Limousin Park: $180,000
• Redevelopment of the skatepark into an outdoor multisport area and addition of a pump track: $900,000
• Redevelopment of the softball field at Seaway Park: $650,000
• Replacement of the synthetic surface at PVM1: $1.5 million

“Several people have mentioned to us the urgent need to renovate the pool and Préville Park, as well as Saint-Denis Park and Upper-Edison Park. This is the type of investment that the council considers to be entirely appropriate. That is why we will also be refurbishing the skatepark and softball field at Seaway Park and the pickleball court at Préville, while keeping in mind that we want to expand the range of services for new sports facilities in the coming years. To this end, we will develop new tennis courts, pickleball courts, and a refrigerated ice rink, and we will add a pump track at Seaway Park for our young people," announced the mayor.

The council also understood the message from citizens who complain about the condition of the pavement on several local streets and the feeling of insecurity at certain intersections. That is why, over the next three years, the City will invest $34.4 million in its road infrastructure program (roads, streets, sidewalks).

More specifically, we will accelerate street resurfacing and implement traffic calming measures, rebuild roadways, and take the opportunity to implement climate change adaptation measures. For example, green curb extensions will be installed to improve rainwater drainage and reduce water accumulation. Finally, in terms of recurring maintenance, funds have been set aside for the annual flushing of the water system to ensure the quality of drinking water is maintained.

Among the most significant projects planned for 2026-2028 are:

• a $10 million investment to rebuild Hickson Boulevard and Union Avenue;
• $6.55 million to repair Tiffin Road between Riverside and Saint-Thomas;
• $2.97 million to repair Isère and Namur avenues;
• $7.5 million in road resurfacing work, at a rate of $2.5 million per year, plus $123,000 in temporary labor to speed up completion.

Council members also wish to engage in conversation with the Saint-Lambert community. For example, starting on December 13 and continuing each month thereafter, citizens will be invited to have coffee with the mayor and councilors to express their concerns. “This dialogue will allow us to stay in tune with those we represent and remain agile and open to their changing expectations,” added Mayor Blancquaert.

The City will be able to count on the support of Ms. Myrabelle Chicoine, who took office as interim general manager on Tuesday, as Mr. Sylvain Villeneuve ends his term and returns to a well-deserved retirement. Ms. Chicoine will assist the City in developing a 10-year strategic plan.

The detailed budget will be available in the Budget section and the PTI in the Project Planning section.