Budget adds up

The city loosened its belt a little on the proposed 2011 budget with a few additions worth $239,000, but the proposed tax rate is still likely to drop.

Although some city councillors had hoped to bring the budget down to a zero per cent increase, widening Shuniah Street, supporting a Children’s Aid Society outreach program and adding new outdoor hockey rinks for two neighbourhood parks were proposed for the budget Wednesday evening.

Before council went through the transportation and works and community services department budgets, city treasurer Carol Busch said there would be an unexpected drop in the proposed tax increase.

The city received the province’s draft education tax rate, expected to drop by 4.3 per cent. That brought the expected proposed tax rate for the city down from 1.64 per cent to 1.13. But with the proposed additions, Busch said the current proposed tax increase is 1.27 per cent.

Coun. Andrew Foulds requested $160,000 to widen Shuniah Street for safety reasons. The road is already scheduled for significant improvements, including a bike lane, but because it’s a main road for his ward Foulds said it needs to be wider than recommended.

Foulds added that because it’s also a major bus route for city transit, the city would likely be widening it at some point in the future. The road sees anywhere from 7,000 to 9,000 vehicles a day he added.

"If we’re going to do it, I’m going to suggest this is the time to do it," Foulds said.

While council did approve the amendment, which will widen the road by one metre, some councilors, like Coun. Lynda Rydholm, said council can’t “cherry pick” certain roads to have additional money in the budget when there are projects, such as Rosslyn Road in her ward, that were halted.

"I have about a million (roads projects) I want restored," Rydholm said.

Foulds said because Shuniah was slated for improvement anyway, the widening needed to be done.

"If you go on this road you’ll know it has to be repaired," Foulds said.

Council added $65,000 to the community services budget after a request from the Children’s Aid Society Tuesday evening. The money funds an outreach program, running since 1988, for the city’s homeless youth.

But the amendment came with a recommendation that the city’s intergovernmental committee lobby the province to start picking up the tab for a service, which should come from Ontario.

Coun. Mark Bentz said municipal tax dollars shouldn’t be paying for social services.

"We want to do what’s right. We’re here. We’re local … but it’s Ontario’s responsibility as a province to fund this," Bentz said.

Another funding request from Tuesday’s public consultation was granted Wednesday as the city will put $7,000 for boards and lights at Minnesota Park for outdoor rinks.

Another $7,000 will do the same for Current River’s John Kusznier Memorial Park.
Coun. Rebecca Johnson reminded council that every dollar added to the budget ends up being paid by the taxpayer, and that the two parks have pond rinks as it is. The additions were adding up too quickly on the municipal budget, she added.

"I’m not prepared to put another $14,000 in here," Johnson said. "There is a rink there right now."

Coun. Paul Pugh, who asked for the $7,000 for Minnesota Park, said the addition was not a lot of money for the amount of good promotion it would bring the city. He said the initiative would also help with council’s agenda of making youth as a priority.

"The amount of money we’re talking about here is puny," said Pugh. "But the message we’re sending out is huge…this is the wrong time to try and squeeze pennies."

Also Wednesday, council received a memo on a trail that some residents infamously refer to as the black path. The stretch of trail runs from Castle Green to County Park.

An estimated $500,000 would be needed to light the trail system, said parks division manager Paul Fayrick.

No member of council requested additional funding for the trail in the proposed budget.