Signs, parks and marketing got the axe this week as Morinville councillors proposed to lop about $450,000 from next year's budget — with the promise of more cuts to come.
Town council voted 6-1 in favour of second reading of the 2012 budget on Nov. 22. Coun. Ben Van De Walle cast the opposing vote.
Council tabled a budget earlier this month that featured a four-per-cent tax increase and a long list of optional operational, capital and utility projects. Even if the town emptied its operating reserves, doing all those projects would leave Morinville with a $50,732 operating deficit.
Councillors made a whirlwind of motions to cut about $450,000 from the budget prior to second reading, trimming some projects while dropping others altogether.
And there are more cuts to come, says Mayor Lloyd Bertschi. "We've done a great job of cutting out 'nice-to-have' stuff," he said, but council has yet to touch administration's operating budget. He called on staff to come to the next budget meeting with some $150,000 in operating cuts that, if passed, would preserve some of the town's operating reserves.
Public weighs in
Resident Linda Lyons had a long list of items she said council should take off its list for 2012, including affordable housing, a pedestrian safety review and the Couer de Morinville area structure plan.
"Do we really need a big computerized sign?" she asked, referring to the $71,000 item for an outdoor message sign.
This proposed budget would add about $143 to her tax bill, she said, which was "unacceptable" to seniors like herself living on fixed pensions.
The budget commits about $5.2 million to wages, resident Paul O'Dea said to council — a 41-per-cent jump since 2009.
"Does this represent a sustainable balance between services and costs?"
He called on council to do an external efficiency review of its operations by the end of next June, suggesting that the funds could come from the town's brand rollout, pegged at $50,000 in the budget.
Bertschi and several councillors supported the idea of a review, noting that they had set aside $75,000 for one in 2013. Council asked administration to look at how that review could be done next year instead.
Chops ahoy
Coun. David Pattison started the trim-fest by cutting in half an $80,000 item for an economic development strategy, saying "$40,000 in the budget, especially when we haven't done economic development in years, is more than enough."
And $71,000 for a digital messaging sign was excessive, he said. "People rarely use signs," he said, and an updated website would be far more effective at promotion. He moved to eliminate the sign.
Bertschi disagreed, arguing that the town needed to do a better job of promoting the Community Cultural Centre.
"We've had two Juno Award winners here," he noted, yet both acts drew about 120 people. "Part of that is awareness and you can't do that without a proper sign."
But other councillors, such as Lisa Holmes, agreed with Pattison.
"I'm not sure we even need it at all," she said. "Having a proper website is way more important right now."
Council passed Pattison's motion, with Van De Walle casting the opposing vote.
Coun. Paul Krauskopf knocked $60,000 out of the budget for marketing and citizen engagement, saying that both should be funded out of the $125,000 allocated to upgrade administration's computers. He also moved to defer $7,500 worth of walking trail signs until 2013, and to eliminate $10,000 to train councillors.
Holmes moved to reduce by half a $200,000 item for a park in the Lakes District, which passed unanimously. A similar $30,000 cut to the budget for a park at Vanier School also passed, with Coun. Nicole Boutestein opposed.
Council also supported Holmes's move to eliminate funds for the arts council and community garden, saving $10,000. It was more appropriate for these groups to get their cash from the community grant program, Holmes said, which she bulked up by $15,000.
Holmes also challenged a $200,000 item for a study on engineering work to East Boundary Road. "I wonder if we're putting the cart before the horse," she said, as those upgrades depend on talks with Sturgeon County. Council, with the exception of Van De Walle, supported her move to reduce the item to $100,000 and to start work on it in mid-2012, giving the town time to talk to the county.
Boutestein convinced council to remove $42,000 for smart boards and other technology upgrades to the town hall, arguing that they should be covered by the funds available for renovations to St. Germain Plaza. She tried to add $50,000 for new library furniture to the budget, but was defeated 4-3, with Van De Walle, Holmes, and herself on the losing side.
Pattison and Bertschi saved about $42,000 by reducing the funds to design three parks to $30,000 from $72,000. "They won't go bad," Bertschi said of the designs, and could be done inexpensively by summer students.
Coun. Gordon Boddez did not propose any cuts or additions, but did make a long speech on the importance of keeping taxes low. "A four-per-cent increase, I think, is pushing it."
Acting chief administrative officer Debbie Oyarzun said administration would post a revised budget on the town's website sometime this week and would take comments from residents online.
Council is to hold its final vote on the budget on Dec. 13.
