City of Oshawa

What City of Oshawa does

The City of Oshawa is a municipal government entity serving approximately 170,000 residents as the largest urban municipality in Durham Region, Ontario, Canada. Operating under the Municipal Act, 2001 (S.O. 2001 c.25), the City delivers comprehensive civic services including fire services, emergency preparedness, waste collection and recycling, property taxation, building permits, planning and development, animal services, housing services, recreation programs, and parks/trails management. The City celebrated its centennial in 2024 and is headquartered at 50 Centre St. S., Oshawa, with a workforce of 1,001-5,000 employees. It is publicly governed by an elected City Council and operates with no parent company or private ownership structure.

Name

City of Oshawa

Legal name

The Corporation of the City of Oshawa

Website

https://oshawa.ca

Company type

Public

Founded year

1849

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

The City of Oshawa is a municipal government serving approximately 170,000 residents as the largest urban municipality in Durham Region, Ontario, delivering fire, waste, recreation, property tax, planning, and parks services through digital and physical channels.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Municipal Government Services

NAICS

Fire Protection (922160), Water, Sewage and Other Systems (2213), Other Services to Buildings and Dwellings (561790)

SIC

Services-Facilities Support Management Services (8744), Services-To Dwellings & Other Buildings (7340), Transportation Services (4700)

akta.pro primary industry

Mayor/City Manager & General Administration (BPAIACAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Public Works & Municipal Infrastructure (Streets, Stormwater, Facilities) (BPAIACAF), Community Safety Administration (Fire/EMS, Emergency Management) (BPAIACAL), Housing & Neighborhood Services (Local Housing Programs) (BPAIACAJ)

Keywords

• Municipal government services
• Property tax administration
• Building permit services
• Recreation programs
• Waste management services

Headquarters

HQ city

Oshawa

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Property Taxes: Primary revenue source through municipal property taxation. Residents pay property taxes based on property assessments.
2. User Fees and Service Charges: Various fees including recreation programs, facility rentals (arenas, ball diamonds, courts, rooms, sports fields), building permits, business licences, parking, and marriage ceremonies.
3. Vacant Building Registry: $250 annual registration fee for vacant buildings including permit and all inspections.
4. Search of Records (Compliance Letters): $200 for regular (10 business days) and $300 for rush (2 business days) processing of compliance letter requests.
5. Development Charges: Fees collected from developers for new construction to fund infrastructure growth.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The City of Oshawa delivers municipal government services to approximately 170,000+ residents, including fire services, emergency preparedness, waste collection and recycling, property tax administration, building permits, planning and development, animal services, recreation programs, parks and trails, housing services, and community grants. These services are distributed through centralized customer service (Service Oshawa counter and contact center), digital platforms (Service Oshawa Online and Application Portal), and an extensive network of 197+ parks and facilities.

Product overview

The City of Oshawa operates a municipal government website that provides various public services to residents and visitors. The website offers information and access to City services including Service Oshawa (centralized customer service), an Application Portal for planning and building permits, recreation programs and facilities, property tax services, and various other civic functions. These are government services rather than commercial technology products.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Service Oshawa Online Online platform enabling Oshawa residents to report municipal issues 24/7 including tree maintenance, faulty parking meters, lost pets, missed garbage collection, parks/trail maintenance, roadway/sidewalk maintenance, and streetlight outages.
• Application Portal All-in-one paperless software platform that streamlines planning, building permit, and licence applications for residents, businesses, and developers.
• Property Tax Calculator Free electronic tool that allows residents and commercial property owners to review property tax estimates based on the year's final tax bill for both residential and commercial properties.
• Recreation Programs Over 250 programs for preschool, children, youth, and adults across Oshawa's recreation facilities, including swimming, sports, camps, and therapeutic recreation.
• Parks and Facilities 197+ parks and recreational facilities throughout Oshawa including community centers, arenas, pools, splash pads, beaches, tennis courts, pickleball courts, playgrounds, sports fields, gardens, and off-leash dog parks.
• Fire Services Municipal fire suppression, prevention, and emergency response services provided to Oshawa residents and businesses.
• Waste Collection Services Curbside collection of garbage, recycling, green bin organics, yard waste, and large item pickup for Oshawa residents.
• Building Permits and Planning Building permit issuance, planning approvals, and development application processing for residential and commercial construction in Oshawa.
• Animal Services Municipal animal control, licensing, lost pet recovery, and wildlife management services for Oshawa residents.
• Community Events and Festivals Over 100 festivals, events, walks, and runs hosted annually in Oshawa, including Canada Day celebrations and seasonal community programming.
• Search of Records (Compliance Letters) Compliance letter processing service offered at $200 for regular (10 business days) and $300 for rush (2 business days) requests, including tax.
• Vacant Building Registry Annual registration service for vacant buildings at $250 per registration, including permit and all inspections, with a $150 exemption application fee.

Quantifiable outcome

• TeachingCity 2024-2025: 24 projects completed, 399 students involved, 22 faculty members, 53 staff participants
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and secondary.

• Durham CollegecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTeachingCity Oshawa collaboration partner. Students from Durham College participate in applied research projects across multiple programs including Architectural Technology, Environmental Technology, Fine Arts, Media Art and Design, and Social Sciences. Projects include green building standards development, site planning analysis, public art installations, and mixed-reality fire training simulations.
• Ontario Tech UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTeachingCity Oshawa collaboration partner. Faculty and students from faculties including Engineering and Applied Science, Social Science and Humanities collaborate on community development research, greenhouse gas inventories, diversity and inclusion action plans, and downtown community identity projects.
• Trent University Durham GTAcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTeachingCity Oshawa collaboration partner. Students from Child & Youth Studies, Psychology, and Social Service Worker programs participate in recreation programming research, neurodiversity initiatives including Dungeons & Dragons clubs, and youth barrier studies for recreation services.
• University of Toronto (Department of Civil Engineering)secondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerTeachingCity Oshawa collaboration partner. Faculty and students from the Department of Civil Engineering contribute to smart city applications, transportation planning, and infrastructure optimization projects.
• Durham Region TransitcoreOthersProvides bus services throughout the Region of Durham including Oshawa. Offers specialized door-to-door transit services for residents and visitors with disabilities through specialized services division.
• GO TransitcoreOthersProvides regional transit including bus and rail connections to Oshawa station. Part of Metrolinx regional transportation network connecting Oshawa to Greater Toronto Area.
• Parkwood National Historic SitesecondaryOthersOne of Canada's last remaining grand estates, National Historic Site showcasing architectural, landscape and interior designs of 1920s-1930s. Former home of R.S. McLaughlin and family. Featured tourism attraction promoted by the City.
• Robert McLaughlin GallerysecondaryOthersMost extensive public gallery in Durham Region with permanent collection of over 4,000 works of art, four exhibition galleries, educational programs, and two art studios. Featured tourism and cultural attraction.
• Region of DurhamcoreOthersRegional municipality that Oshawa is part of. Region of Durham maintains traffic control signals and provides regional services including water efficiency programs. City coordinates with Region on road permits, traffic signals, and health applications.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• Town of Ajax: Smaller lower-tier municipality within Durham Region delivering the same Ontario municipal mandate, useful as a same-region reference for tax-base and service-delivery dynamics.

Direct peers

• City of Cambridge: Ontario single-tier municipality similar in population and service mandate, providing parallel property-tax, recreation, fire, permitting, waste and parks functions.
• City of Barrie: Ontario lower-tier city of similar scale to Oshawa, delivering the comparable single-tier municipal service bundle including property tax administration, recreation, fire, transit coordination, and development charges funding infrastructure.
• City of Whitby: Adjacent lower-tier municipality in Durham Region serving a comparable residential population base, providing the same Ontario municipal mandate of property taxation, recreation, fire services, permitting, and waste collection.
• City of Kingston: Ontario single-tier municipality of similar size delivering parallel city-level services including property tax, recreation, transit, fire, waste collection, and permitting across a comparable urban footprint.
• City of Guelph: Ontario single-tier municipality of comparable population size, providing parallel municipal services including property taxation, recreation programming, emergency services, permitting and waste management.
• City of St. Catharines: Ontario lower-tier city of comparable size operating the same broader municipal mandate over similar property-tax, recreation, fire, transit and infrastructure service lines.

Broad incumbents

• City of Brampton: Larger GTA municipality delivering the same municipal service bundle as Oshawa with similar suburban/GTA commuter character, useful as a large-scale operational comparison.
• City of Mississauga: Larger GTA lower-tier municipality operating the same municipal service categories (fire, recreation, transit, planning, property tax) but at substantially greater scale, providing an upper-bound benchmark for service breadth and operational complexity.
• City of Hamilton: Ontario upper-tier municipality operating a broader regional service mandate (water, waste, public health, transit) that overlaps with Oshawa's lower-tier municipal functions, providing a benchmark for service integration.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/oshawacity
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/oshawacity
• Facebookfacebook.com/oshawacity
• LinkedInca.linkedin.com/company/cityofoshawa
• Instagraminstagram.com/cityofoshawa

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors2 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about City of Oshawa