The City of Saint John must produce an annual budget in order to set property tax rates and water rates. The annual budgets must be balanced with no projected deficit.  The City of Saint John maintains a General Operating Budget, Utility Fund Operating Budget and General Fund and Utility Fund Capital Budgets. The Operating Budget funds municipal services such as road maintenance, parks, emergency services (police and fire), and garbage collection, and many other services.

Saint John Water budget based on a user pay system.  Rate payers are charged based on the Utility’s cost of providing services to each class of rate payers.  Saint John Water currently has two classes of customers which are Potable Water Customers who receive treated drinkable water along with sewerage services and Industrial Customers who receive raw water only.

The City and Utility Fund Capital Budget goes toward maintaining and rehabilitating existing infrastructure, as well as investing in new development that will benefit residents and businesses for years to come and contribute to Saint John’s economy and quality of life.

Saint John has four off-leash dog parks across the City. Dog owners are reminded to respect the rules of the parks by keeping their dogs leashed unless they are within the designated off-leash area. All owners must pick up after their dogs, and properly dispose of their refuse. For your convenience, City dog parks offer dog bag dispensers and garbage cans and pole baskets. 

Rockwood Park

10 Fisher Lakes Drive

(Fisher Lakes/Hawthorne Street entrance to the Park.)

Hours: Dusk until dawn. Open year round.

Parking and vehicle access is restricted to April-December.

Rainbow Park 

205 Sydney Street

Hours: 24 hours a day, year round.

Chown Park

50 Paul Harris Street

Hours: 24 hours a day, year round.

Little River Reservoir

1800 Loch Lomond Road

Hours: 24 hours a day, year round.

NOTE:

City By-law dictates that unless you are in a designated off-leash area, your dog must remain on a leash at all times. This By-law is enforced by fines, and offences are recorded.

If a person has been bitten by a dog, or if there’s an altercation with dog owners, contact the Saint John City Police.

The City of Saint John provides City employees the financial benefits of a pension plan. Upon meeting the eligibility criteria, all employees of the City of Saint John are required to join the City’s Shared Risk Plan.

The City of Saint John and the four unions—representing police, firefighters, inside workers, and outside workers—jointly agreed to create the City of Saint John Shared Risk Plan, which became effective January 1, 2013. The Plan is administered by a Board of Trustees made up of eight people—each of the four unions appoint one trustee, and the Saint John Common Council appoints the other four.

Information with respect to the pension plan can be found at www.sjsrp.ca.