A majority of Maple Ridge residents don’t think they’re getting good value for their tax dollars.
That’s one of the key findings from a 2025 community survey presented to city council at the Jan. 27 year in review meeting. The findings were based on an online survey taken by more than 700 residents and business owners.
Asked about the most pressing issues facing Maple Ridge, residents most frequently cited infrastructure investment (59%), traffic congestion (45%), taxes (35%), and public safety (35%).
Among property tax payers, 55% rate the overall value they receive for property taxes paid as “poor” or “very poor,” with 33 per cent of respondents saying “poor,” and 22 per cent “very poor.”
Conversely, 13 per cent rate their value for property taxes positively – with 12 per cent calling it “good,” plus one per cent calling it “very good.”
By comparison, other B.C. cities have surveys showing far higher resident approval of their value for taxes – Coquitlam reports 80 per cent, Kelowna 73 per cent, and Kamloops 65 per cent, based on surveys from the past three years.
In 2014, 33 per cent of Maple Ridge residents responded good or very good value, while only 23 per cent rated it poor or very poor.
Anna Lilly, the city’s director of external relations, said Maple Ridge City Hall must do a better job of informing residents about what services and capital projects they are getting for their money, particularly during tough economic times.
“We’re in some pretty challenging times when it comes to affordability,” said Lilly.
She said the city will break down tax bills so taxpayers can see what share goes to education, TransLink, Metro, and other levies collected by municipalities. They will also show taxpayers what portion of their city tax levy pays for policing, fire protection, parks and recreation, and other services.
“With that greater awareness should come a greater appreciation of the value,” said Lilly after the meeting.
She noted council has listened to public feedback on this issue. City staff requested a six per cent tax hike for the 2026 budget, but council has requested they whittle that down to a 3.5 per cent increase.
Surveys had been done approximately every few years – this is the ninth since 2003. Lilly told council staff went back to the public in back-to-back years to inform the upcoming budget.
“We really felt it was important to go back to the community in 2025, given the pace of change and volume of activity that we have,” said Lilly.
The survey found strong support for building, and Lilly said 95 per cent of respondents say it’s important to continue to invest in long-term capital projects.
Community pride remains strong. A majority of respondents agree that Maple Ridge has natural beauty, community spirit, and economic potential (70%). More than half (56%) also agree that Maple Ridge is an attractive place to live, particularly because of its natural spaces and family-friendly neighbourhoods.
“The survey demonstrates that there’s definitely community pride,” said Lilly. “There’s real caring about the community, and people enjoy living in Maple Ridge.”
Road maintenance (96%), fire protection (93%), and police services (93%) continue to rank as top priorities.
Asked about the direction of the city, 31 per cent said it’s going in the right direction, compared with 43 per cent who said “wrong direction.”
Those who feel the city is on the right track point to positive leadership (41%) and community building initiatives (26%).
Those who say the city is on the wrong track cite over-development (46%), infrastructure gaps (35%), and traffic (28%).