Lachlan Labere - Salmon Arm Observer Published: December 01, 2009 6:00 PM
A 4.7 per cent tax increase in the new year for Salmon Arm residents is too much, says city council. After spending around 10 hours dissecting, discussing and debating draft one of the municipal budget for 2010, and finding little to cut from the proposed five per cent tax increase within, council decided to send the weighty bundle of documents back to staff with the request to return with something leaner. “Council has asked staff to come back with something reflecting two to three per cent,” said Mayor Marty Bootsma. “Council is reluctant to micro-manage the city and cut programs that maybe staff feels has priority. So, we’d like staff to present us with some options where they’d like to make some cuts.”
As presented to council, the 2010 budget reflects a two-per cent tax increase, according to corporate services director Monica Dalziel. However, the budget also shows a shortfall of $396,858, requiring an additional three-per cent tax increase. On top of this, city residents will be looking at paying for mandatory garbage collection and recycling starting in September and pro-rated at $60 per single-family residence ($170 annually). The recommended tax increase takes into account increased costs related largely to policing, snow removal, wage increases ($210,000) and to paying off debenture borrowing for large projects, including the city’s $210,000 share of the 20/21st Street underpass. Council heard budget presentations from staff relating to specific municipal functions. Fire chief Brad Shirley reported a budget tighter than 2009’s, with points of interest being wage increases, a transition in the dispatch function and the health and safety co-ordinator position, currently overseen by the fire department’s administration and safety officer Rod Macfarlane. Shirley explained that, at most, Macfarlane is able to commit 30 per cent of his time to municipal safety issues.
This related to another budget issue, the creation of a full-time city safety co-ordinator. The budget shows $30,000 for the position, starting July 1. City human resources manager Donna Shultz, arguing for the position, explained a safety audit of the city showed numerous inefficiencies. “WorkSafe BC has written a number of orders to us this year indicating we were not in compliance with occupational health and safety regulations,” said Shultz. “We have complied now, but I think we’re on WorkSafe BC’s radar.” Council agreed to leave the $30,000 in the budget, but for a part-time safety co-ordinator, despite comment from Coun. Ivan Idzan that the amount might not be enough to attract someone qualified for the position.
As in past years there was much debate over the policing budget, which shows an increase of about $200,000. Half of this, however, relates to a one-time transfer payment that up until last year had been paid from a reserve that has since been depleted. Council was able to cut $17,000 intended for parking lot upgrades from the policing budget. There was substantial debate among council (sans Bootsma for reason of conflict of interest) over a new reserve, budgeted at $70,000, for the eventual reclamation and rehabilitation of city lease lots along Canoe Beach. Coun. Chad Eliason argued for the reserve, stating the city must have sufficient funds set aside for the time when the city no longer supports the three-year leases. “If we don’t take that money from these lease lots and put it into a reserve for the rehabilitation of that end of Canoe Beach, when those leases are eventually done, I think we’d be leaving the taxpayers of the future with a huge bill,” said Eliason. But Coun. Kevin Flynn argued the amount was too much for a project that might not occur for years to come. “It is, I agree, our only public beach, but I think it’s an under-utilized public beach, even as it stands, and I think the combination of public beach and lease properties that are there now is a good combination and I don’t see that changing probably for 20 years,” said Flynn. After going back and forth, council opted to put $40,000 into the reserve.
By the second day of budget deliberations council had managed to bring the tax increase down to about 3.9 per cent. But additional budget items, including $30,000 for equipment (that received mixed opinion from staff) to essentially deal with weeds in pavement, brought the total back up to 4.7 per cent. Flynn noted that, according to staff, the budget was created to have minimal impact on service levels. He suggested this, in today’s economic climate, was not the right approach. “I still feel through this whole budget, we’re status quo instead of adjusting to the economic environment on behalf of our taxpayers… Quite a lot of them are laid off, businesses that have made a bunch of cutbacks, and we’re just carrying on business as usual,” said Flynn. Recognizing there’s little wiggle room in the budget, Bootsma says he’s reluctant to see services cut, adding he tends to receive a lot more negative feedback from residents when they are. “I think (taxpayers) would probably like to see increased service levels and a reduced tax,” said Bootsma. “But, realistically, I hope to see a minimal tax increase. I don’t really think we’ll have to reduce service levels to any appreciable degree.”
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