The city will collect less money than planned from property owners in 2014, but how much less won’t be known until budget discussions in the fall.
On Monday council, sitting as the standing committee on finance, combed through the 10-year municipal and utility repair, maintenance and replace capital plan and managed to chop a grand total of $280,000 from it.
But without knowing exactly how much money the city will be asking taxpayers for in 2014, Mayor Nolan Crouse said it’s hard to know what kind of effect Monday’s motions really had.
“The effect on the tax rate isn’t clear because it wasn’t presented last night but (the capital plan) should have less scope for the 2014 budget and ultimately lower the tax rate to what administration was presenting,” Crouse said.
Administration has made some changes to how the capital budget is presented to council, which is typically explored by council well in advance of the operating budget so staff can start planning projects in advance. Instead of grouping all projects together, administration now separates capital projects into growth projects and RMR projects, which stands for repair, maintain and replace.
“I think it’s a bit awkward because it’s out of sync with the budget cycle,” Crouse said.
Of the motions passed, council cut $30,000 from a $280,000 recreation fund that would pay for repairs to city playgrounds, and postponed engineering work totalling $50,000 for demolition and construction of fire hall No. 1 downtown.
Crouse, who has called for delaying the fire hall project since it was first proposed in 2009, said the city doesn’t have the estimated $7 million to spend, and said it shouldn’t be knocking down a 50-year-old building.
“It’s an expensive proposition,” said Crouse. “I do not believe you rebuild that for $7 million.”
Crouse also got support for a motion to cut $200,000 from the information technology office replacement plan, cutting it from $632,700 in 2014. He said he saw no point to replacing computers and printers every three to four years.
“I don’t want the St. Albert taxpayer to pay to replace my computer just because it’s time to replace my computer,” Crouse said.
Crouse tried but failed to move another of his favourite targets into a whole other category. Crouse has frequently tried to somehow cut funds from the city’s remediation of its former public works site in Riel. The city is obligated to monitor the site due to contamination of the surrounding soil by the road salt that was kept there and used during the winter months.
Crouse tried to have council redefine the ongoing program as a utility project instead of a capital project. But Anita Ho, the city’s chief financial officer, pointed out the utility budget is already scheduled to be short of money in 2016. Adding the $800,000 public works remediation project to the utility budget would simply accelerate that. Crouse’s motion was subsequently defeated.
“If we add another $800,000 to be funded by utility capital dollars, that means the projected deficit will come sooner,” Ho said.
While it had no immediate impact on the 2014 budget, councillors did approve construction of a new pumphouse in Sturgeon Heights for $20.2 million, but in 2023 instead of its estimated date of 2020.
