Announcement

On January 31st, Mississauga Council endorsed the City’s 2024 federal and provincial pre-budget submissions. The recommendations outlined in these submissions, if adopted, will ensure Mississauga remains a world-class and resilient City. Mississauga continues to advocate to the federal and provincial governments to address ongoing pressures, such as housing affordability, climate change, transit and active transportation, and growth, among other priorities.

“Providing necessary services and the high quality of life that residents expect remains a priority while we continue building a Mississauga that meets our growing City’s needs,” said Acting Mayor John Kovac. “While continuous improvement and innovation drive our efforts, we require assistance from other levels of government to enhance public transit, address the housing crisis, and build sustainable communities. Investing in dynamic cities like Mississauga strengthens our province and country. As we look toward the year ahead, I’m calling on our federal and provincial partners to continue to work with us to address our shared priorities. We can make an impact on people’s lives through collaboration and our shared commitment to address the pressures facing our communities.”

Mississauga’s pre-budget submissions include recommendations that will help address needs focused on building a twenty-first century city, including increasing housing affordability, alleviating financial pressures, investing in key rapid transit projects, mitigating climate change, and supporting the tourism sector.

Recommendations for 2024 include:

1. Compensating Mississauga for the impacts of housing legislation

• Work with Mississauga and other municipalities to understand the full cost of the Bill 23 changes and fully compensate cities for the financial losses incurred.
• Increase funding for housing infrastructure needed to meet the province’s housing targets and measure municipalities on units approved, not housing starts.
• Amend the Planning Act requirement regarding notices in print newspapers to reflect the realities of the decline of the print news industry in Ontario to reduce unnecessary costs on cities.

2. A new/fair deal for municipalities

• A new funding formula that fairly supports the building of twenty-first century cities, recognizing that the property tax is insufficient to address the growing pressures faced by Mississauga.
• Upload to the province the costs of operating the Hazel McCallion Hurontario LRT, similar to the arrangement in Toronto with the Finch West and Eglinton Crosstown LRTs.

3. Provincial support for key financial priorities

• Expedite the hiring of Justices of the Peace to support Mississauga’s Provincial Offences Act Court, reduce court backlogs, and increase revenue.
• That the province consult with Mississauga on the Greater Toronto
  Airports Authority payment in lieu of taxes formula before any decisions are made, in order to create a fair and equitable agreement that treats Mississauga’s resident and business taxpayers with respect.

4. Funding for Mississauga transit projects

• Move forward to expedite the reintroduction of a fully funded Downtown Loop to connect downtown Mississauga to the Hazel McCallion LRT, helping Mississauga to be a truly transit oriented city and reach the province’s housing targets.
• That the provincial government match the funding of the federal government ($500M) and bring all-day two-way service to the Milton GO line as soon as possible.
• That the government fund the detailed design for the Pearson Airport connection to facilitate planning, design and construction efficiencies with the current Eglinton Crosstown West Extension LRT project.
• The governments fund the implementation of the Downtown Mobility Hub and Transitway Connection.
• The Provincial government fund the Transit Project Assessment Process to plan for the next phase of the project westward.

5. Investments that make an impact on climate change

• Support to fund the construction of a zero-emission transit garage estimated at $500M.
• Provincial and Federal support to offset the cost premium of zero-emission buses.
• Government support for ready-to-deploy fueling infrastructure technologies.
• Create a separate fund for hydrogen technologies in transportation.
• Fund incentives and programs for adopting district energy and low-carbon technologies for buildings.

6. Supporting Mississauga tourism

• Funding to support the tourism industry’s continued recovery and policies and programs to address the ongoing labour shortage.

“For nearly two decades, the City of Mississauga has maintained a ‘AAA’ credit rating through efficient, lean and innovative practices. As a strong municipal partner with a growing economy, we deliver value for money and exceptional customer service while managing pressures like inflation and housing affordability,” said Shari Lichterman, City Manager and Chief Administrative Officer. “With costs increasing at a rate higher than the revenue we generate through property taxes and user fees, we need our federal and provincial partners to support our recommendations. Our responsibilities continue to grow. Continued collaboration across all levels of government is vital as we look at sustainable ways to tackle challenges and seize opportunities.”

Pre-budget submissions

The City is submitting its recommendations as part of the 2024 federal and provincial pre-budget consultations. Read the submissions to learn more:

• 2024 Federal Pre-Budget Submission
• 2024 Provincial Pre-Budget Submission

Mississauga Fire and Emergency Services (MFES) has welcomed two anticipated, state-of-the-art heavy rescue vehicles. This purchase is a significant milestone for MFES as it marks the first time it has acquired heavy rescue vehicles of this calibre. It also marks a notable advancement in the City’s commitment to ensuring the highest level of safety measures and preparedness for its residents and neighbourhoods.

“These new heavy rescue vehicles represent a substantial investment in the safety and well-being of our community,” said Deryn Rizzi, Fire Chief and Director of Emergency Management. “They are integral to our mission of providing prompt and effective emergency response services, ensuring that our highly skilled firefighters have the necessary resources to handle complex and challenging situations efficiently.”

What is a heavy rescue vehicle?

Heavy rescue vehicles provide Mississauga’s highly skilled and trained firefighters with state-of-the-art resources to efficiently respond to challenging and complex situations. They are uniquely designed to carry specialized equipment used for complex emergency scenarios such as:

• Light and heavy vehicle collisions
• Trench rescues
•  High and low angle rope rescues
• Confined space rescues
• Industrial, machine and elevator accidents
• Structural fires
• Medical emergencies

Heavy rescue vehicle features

In addition to firefighting gear, these heavy rescue vehicles are equipped with a variety of technical rescue tools, including:

• Battery-powered hydraulic extrication tools
• Stabilizing struts used to provide structural shoring and vehicle stabilization
• Rope rescue devices
• Confined space equipment
• Trench rescue tools
• Rigging hardware
• Machinery and elevator rescue tools, among many others

The heavy rescue vehicles will be strategically deployed across Mississauga to maximize coverage and improve response times, further enhancing MFES’s ability to protect lives and property. These new vehicles will also provide support for emergencies such as structure fires, atmospheric testing, medical crises, and motor vehicle collisions.

Technical specifications of the heavy rescue vehicle

Make: Pierce Manufacturing, Appleton WI

Cab: Five passenger, extended cab with interior storage cabinets

Body:

• 24’ Walk-in Rescue, 78” interior height
• Fixed front bumper 12,000 lb winch & 9,000 lb mobile winch – To assist with the pulling and stabilizing of vehicles.
• Eight rope rescue anchor points – This assists with both low and high angle rope rescue manoeuvers.
• Onan 25kW PTO driven on-board generator – This will provide auxiliary electrical power for various on-board tools and equipment.
• 200’ electric and air hose reels.
• Will-Burt Night Scan Chief Roof Mounted LED Light Tower – This provides lighting at night, during emergencies.
• Atlas-Copco 16.7 CFM @175 psi on-board air compressor – This provides compressed air for pneumatic tools and equipment.

Future additions to the MFES fleet: electric-powered pumper vehicle

In addition to the heavy rescue vehicles, MFES will also add its first-ever electric-powered pumper vehicle to its fleet this year. The vehicle will support the City in lowering its carbon emissions while boasting eco-friendly features that minimize noise and exhaust emissions. The electric range of the EV pumper is expected to be approximately 100 km. The vehicle will require a 90-minute charging cycle to fully power up the battery using a DC fast charger.

About the MFES vehicle fleet

The heavy rescue vehicles are a valuable addition to the MFES fleet, which will now consist of 17 Pumpers, eight Aerials, four Squads, two Heavy Rescues, one electric-powered Pumper (due to arrive in August 2024) and several other support vehicles including a Hazardous Response Vehicle, Air Rehab Unit, Command Post and three District Chief Command vehicles.

On average, MFES responds to 30,000 emergency calls annually, making it essential to have a robust fleet of emergency vehicles that can handle any situation at a moment’s notice.

For more information on the MFES fleet and services, please visit mississauga.ca/fire.