Lack of snow helps city’s bottom line

By Jeremy Deutsch - Kamloops This Week Published: January 05, 2010

Old Man Winter has certainly been kind to the city’s coffers so far this season. As the calender flipped over into a new decade, the city had 10 per cent left in its snow-removal budget for 2009. “It’s been really quiet,” Jim McNeely, the city’s streets and internal services manager, told KTW. It’s a far cry from last year, when the city blew through its budget, mostly because of a disastrous end to the year for weather. With frigid temperatures and plenty of snow, the city spent $90,000 on overtime alone in December 2008. In December 2009, the city spent $15,000 in extra salary. McNeely credits the decrease in costs this year to a less snowy Christmas, noting it was the first time in 22 years no staff had to work over the holiday. “Christmas is a big hit on the budget if snow falls,” he said. “It’s all just part of living in a winter climate.” During Christmas 2008, the city spent in excess of $100,000 alone clearing the streets.

The city’s snow-removal budget, which runs through a calendar year, was set at $1.75 million for 2009. McNeely said the extra money doesn’t go toward snow removal for this year, but instead goes back in to the city’s operating reserve.“It’s money that’s not spent so, overall, it’s a good thing for the budget,” he said.The city’s new snow-removal budget for 2010 began on Jan. 1.