Rob Ford forewarned Torontonians Wednesday afternoon that property taxes could increase by as much as 2.5 per cent next year as the city seeks to address a troublesome budget shortfall.

Ford told reporters outside City Hall he was going to "clean up the mess that we inherited from the previous administration and get our fiscal house in order."

He said "at the very most, we're going increase taxes by two-and-half per cent" which he said will help address the city's $774 million budget shortfall.

The announcement comes after Ford, on his first day as mayor, promised he would not hike up taxes in his first year on the job.

In a news conference in December, Ford said he would not increase property taxes or cut services in 2011.

"Toronto taxpayers expect the wasteful spending and the annual tax increases to come to an end. Toronto taxpayers do not want a large budget and more spending," the then newly-elected mayor said.

Wednesday's announcement comes amid poll numbers that suggest the mayor's approval rating has plummeted as a result of budget cut suggestions.

According to a telephone poll released Wednesday morning by Forum Research, the mayor pledging to stop the "gravy train" has the support of 42 per cent of Torontonians, compared to 57 per cent in June and 60 per cent at the end of February.

The telephone poll results, which were obtained by asking 1,046 respondents on Sept. 12, are considered accurate 19 times out of 20