A decrease in provincial grant money has forced the city to re-tool its 2009 capital budget, but according to city officials it won't change what projects are completed this year.
Unspent tax dollars and reserves will now pay for a greater portion of capital projects due to a $3.1 million decrease in Municipal Sustainability Initiative (MSI) grants from the province.
The city's director of financial services Jason Labonté said the taxpayer won't feel an extra sting from the changes, but the city's 10-year capital plan may need a revision come budget time next fall.
"We were able to sort of mitigate the decreases this year with sort of shifting some funding," Labonté said. "Really, were using up some balances that we would've used up in 2011, or 2012, so really we're going to see changes to the 10-year plan."
Tax dollars will pay for a community tourism strategy, upgrades to fire station No. 1 and $200,000 to study a potential expansion to the fitness and wellness expansion at Servus Place. Reserves and unspent grants from previous years will cover the remaining capital and utility projects.
The province changed the eligibility requirements for its MSI grants and now a project must be worth $465,000 to qualify for grant money, instead of the previous $200,000.
Labonté said the change is a way for the province to ensure only significant projects get funding.
"They don't want the money being spent on office furniture, they want it to be sort of significant, where there's going to be an impact to the community," he said.
In addition to the dollars shuffling, the city will save $450,000 by delaying a land purchase for the south transit station park 'n' ride until 2010. Although the project has been pushed back, the city has still allocated $50,000 for a concept study for the proposed transit station.
Transit director Bob McDonald doesn't think the changes will affect improvements to the city's transit system.
"We were still shooting for 2011 anyway, so we're hoping that we can get it organized and get all the access and approvals in order to start and complete a project that year," McDonald said.
More money for Riel Park
Council also approved an additional $235,000 to help complete phase one of the Riel Recreation Park redevelopment project.
According to general manager of planning and engineering Neil Jamieson, complications arose during construction on the site, which includes the multi-use sports field, Kinsmen RV park and exhibition grounds and other improvements.
"A lot of it was to do the unknown factors of it being a former sewage lagoon and former landfill," said Jamieson. "There's so many unknowns underneath the ground there you know if you total all that up it's sort of gnawed away at our contingency funding."
The total cost for phase one is now $12.6 million — a sum that was originally pegged at $9 million. Coun. Gareth Jones is frustrated about the extra dollars being poured into the project.
"My big concern here is that we keep on adding money for this project," said Jones Monday. "There has to be a time where we say no, that's it."
Jamieson assured the additional $235,000 will be enough to complete the project.
"This is it for the entire project," Jamieson said. "We don't expect to come back, and hopefully we're done the entire project."
