BONNYVILLE - MD of Bonnyville council has decided to maintain the Dupre Community League’s $5,000 grant and not to take over maintenance of the grounds, reasoning that it would set a precedence where the municipality would have to offer the same option to other community associations experiencing similar challenges.
The decision was made during the Nov. 26 MD council meeting. Previously on Sept. 24, members of the Dupre Community League had asked council if they could forfeit their annual $5,000 Community Association Operating Grant in exchange for the MD of Bonnyville taking over maintenance responsibilities for the Dupre Community Grounds.
Parks and Recreation manager Greg Sheppard explained that it is policy for the maintenance of ball diamonds and grounds to be the sole responsibility of the Community Association, and that taking over the maintenance would cost the MD an estimated $10,760.
The Dupre Community League had expressed difficulty in maintaining community engagement and in hiring maintenance workers despite offering a competitive wage.
Coun. Ben Fadeyiw commented on how many people use the grounds, yet how few are willing to step up and help maintain them.
Fadeyiw brought up the unfortunate possibility that the association might have to shut everything down, though cited a similar circumstance with the Cherry Grove grounds, where the possibility of shutting down sparked an increase in community engagement.
Esther Quiambao, the general manager of Planning and Community Services, commented that the Dupre Community League’s request for MD maintenance support did seem “dire,” but intervening can pose challenges.
“I believe that there is a lot of frustration out there within the community for our rural hall volunteers. It is slowly depleting. How council chooses to support our rural communities to stay vibrant and to stay sustainable - that is going to be a challenge for sure,” said Quiambao.
Fadeyiw questioned, “If the communities don't want to support themselves, then how does an outside organization support them?”
Reeve Barry Kalinski commented that only two families, mainly two couples, are the only ones maintaining the Dupre grounds, and added that they are doing a “first class job.”
“The only issue is that there's five other community associations that have the same set up,” said Deputy Reeve Darcy Skarsen. He acknowledged how difficult the situation is, as the municipality doesn’t want to see grounds shutting down.
“It’s a tough one for sure because if we say yes, we will have to be prepared to being doing this for all the [grounds],” said Skarsen.
Coun. Josh Crick commented that $5,000 is quite a bit of money, and he made the motion to approve administration’s recommended action of maintaining the Community Association Operating Grant.
“As it was said, there’s five other associations with similar assets, and I think some onus does go back to the community groups to operate them,” said Crick.
