Council overviewed the 2019 Interim Budget during an empty public meeting on December 12

Whitecourt Town Council members sat with department heads for  over four hours on Wednesday, December 12 for a special mid-week evening meeting at council chambers to focus on the 2019 interim budget. Though the meeting was open to the public and residents were encouraged to attend, not one member of the public attended. Four members of the Whitecourt Library, staff and board members, attended to hear what council had to say about their portion of the budget but aside from that the audience seats were empty.

Members of administration who took part included Judy Barney, Director of Corporate Services; Director of Community Safety, Doug Tymchyshyn; Director of Community Services, Laura Howarth; Director of Infrastructure Services, Kamruz Zaman; and Director of Planning &Development, Jennine Loberg.

As it currently stands, the Interim Budget for 2019 is valued at $55,068,217 and proposes a 2.98 per cent tax increase for residents.In accordance with Bylaw No. 1411 the interim budget must be approved by council prior to December 31, 2018. This year’s budget process featured a new reporting format that provided council with summary reports for each function in both the operating and capital budgets and separate highlights of strategic priorities, new initiatives, any significant changes and additional comments.

The Press will have a thorough breakdown of the 2019 budget in the new year once it has been officially approved by council. The 2019Capital Budget is proposed to cost $16,067,993 and the proposed Operating Budget will cost $39,000,224. Based on the year-to-date 2018 expenditures,administration estimates that the total impact of the carbon tax will be$100,000 which is a direct cost to the municipality.

One revenue stream that is projected to increase in 2019 is the Automated Enforcement Program. Due to increasing traffic volumes, it is estimated to go up from $374,000 to $390,000. The Capital budget currently includes a line item of $170,000 for the Whitecourt Fire Department to place a deposit towards a $1.7 million aerial platform truck as a replacement for theP3 Engine. It is expected that delivery will take place within 12 to 16 months with the balance of the truck being paid for at that time. This is one area where discussions will need to continue with Woodlands County regarding jointly purchasing the unit.

Many projects are proposed to be completed in 2019 including paving of the Southlands outdoor rink to maximize year round use, re-shingling the old public works shop roof, sidewalk replacement in the highest risk and priority areas, parking lot lighting at Rotary Park, roof replacement at the Hilltop Booster Station, a second columbarium at the cemetery, and replacement of a few items at the AJMC including boot racks, fieldhouse curtains, and change room partitions at the swimming pool.

Several projects that were planned for 2019 are being postponed to future years to save on spending including replacing dasher board sat the McLeod Arena, three projects at the AJMC (roof top unit 101, bathroom fixtures, and blue-backed selectorized equipment), and slide liner replacement at Rotary Park.

The 2018 Cemetery Clean Up program which began in August was completed successfully and is planned to be an annual event going forward.“It’s another level of care,” said Chief Administrative Officer Peter Smyl.Another successful campaign that will continue through 2019 is the Residential Boulevard Program which saw high compliance rates (95 per cent and up) for eachp hase.

Administration has proposed doing a census with the county next year to update figures and cost sharing allocations. The process is anticipated to cost $50,000. An increase in 220 residents would break even on he cost of the census and administration is hopeful that such an increase will be found. The town’s official website is set to be updated and become more user friendly for residents. The proposed search option would enable residents to search back into meeting minutes. The site was last updated in 2008.

One big area of focus for town administration has been taking advantage of grant opportunities. For most grants, a plan already needs to be in place in order to go after it so adding projects to the 20-yearcapital plan provides the greatest opportunity to receive funds. “It’s nice to see that out of an approximately $55 million budget, that close to $9 million is grant dependent. That really reflects well on administration and our staff for capitalizing on each opportunity that’s out there,” explained Mayor Chichak.

“Some people will say it’s not free money because it’s still taxpayer’s money but it’s not money that’s coming out of our own local taxpayer dollars. It’s leveraging money by the provincial and federal governments, and anytime you can do that it really allows you to grow your municipality and work on capital projects that you might not otherwise do without those grants.”

Mayor Chichak said she hopes that residents understand the amount of work that is put into the budgeting process. “I’ve heard this said a few times by members of the public and that’s that we don’t spend enough time on the budget process. I would like the public to know that between the staff time that goes into it, the administration time, our committees time, and council’s time, there has been close to 250 days of man hours that have been put into this budget so far. It’s not a process that anybody here takes lightly. We work hard on ensuring that every component of the budget is looked at and reflected upon. If there are cuts that can be made or projects that can be delayed or other means of completing essential services, then we are looking at it. We are taking the budget and bottom line very seriously.”