Tough decisions lie ahead for Town of Bonnyville council when it comes to the 2020 budgets.
The first draft of the 2020 operational budget has a $1.01-million shortfall, while the capital side is sitting $5.72-million in the red.
Mayor Gene Sobolewski suggested administration look into balancing the capital budget with a zero per cent municipal tax increase and meet with management to see what projects can be delayed until the funds are available.
"I think we have to be very careful as to what we're going to do with it because it's our businesses that are going to be absorbing a heck of a lot more than what our residents do in the form of a tax increase."
Due to the unknowns surrounding the ID 349 funding and provincial budget, Sobolewski stressed certain projects would only be deferred "until the financial picture gets a little more clear."
Assistant CAO Bill Rogers explained during council's regular meeting on Oct. 22 the first drafts presented are preliminary, and often have a shortfall.
"We go back to the drawing board, and we look at accommodation of savings, possible use of transfer funds, and other creative methods to make that go away. We're going to continue to do that this year, and will have something for you... by Dec. 31," he said.
The second drafts of both budgets will be brought forward to council on Nov. 26 before being presented during a public open house scheduled for Dec. 3 in council chambers at 6 p.m.
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Better picture of homelessness in the area
"Homelessness isn't as bad as it once was, but this issue is still here."
David Beale, Bonnyville and District FCSS director, gave an update on the survey they conducted over the summer on homelessness in Bonnyville after council requested the problem be looked into.
When FCSS reached out to local organizations, Beale said the overwhelming response was the current situation doesn't compare to the problems seen in 2014.
"Obviously, we've got a lot more vacancies in the community, and a lot of people have left town. There's just not the traffic here. There were agencies that really wanted to stress the fact that we still have a hidden homeless population, we don't want to suggest that there are no people within the situation. It's just that it was significantly less than it was," he explained.
Although they were denied funding for an Alberta Rural Development Network (ARDN) grant, FCSS was successful in joining the Rural Mental Health Association and will be launching a mental health animator project in 2020 after staff attend training in the new year.
"That ties into this because what we heard from most of the agencies is that much of the homelessness is related to two major problems: one being addictions and the other is mental health issues," Beale noted.
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Creating a hub for youth
During the Bonnyville Primary Care Network's delegation, registered nurse Chantelle Vallee, outlined one of the projects they have on the go, after their grant application to explore what a youth hub could look like in the area was approved.
"We have somebody allocated to help build that over the next year, and we'll bring in more partners to see what that could look like."
The local Primary Care Network is also looking into offering child programming for recreation, which would focus on students who can't attend other after school programs such as the Boys and Girls Club.
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Presentations to council
It was a busy evening for delegations.
Along with FCSS and Primary Care Network, a number of other local groups stepped in front of council to request funding and fill them in on their activities.
Among them was the Bonnyville Municipal Library, who is hoping to eliminate membership fees in 2020, outgoing librarian Ina Smith said.
"The reason we can do that is because expenditures are lower, with my retirement and a new library manager coming in, there's going to be a difference of salary because she's beginning and I'm in the end. We do have some extra money there, so we thought this would be the perfect time," she expressed.
A $5,000 request came from the Bonnyville Gear Grabbers, while the Riverland Recreational Trail Society asked for $1,932, and 4 Wing Cold Lake went over their plans for the 2020 Cold Lake Air Show in hopes that the town would be a sponsor.
Council will discuss supporting these initiatives during their 2020 budget deliberations.
Trails being delayed
Due to the 50 Ave. and 66 St. trail projects coming in over budget, council voted in favour of deferring the work.
"They came in 43 per cent over our engineer costs," Rogers detailed. "They're attributing this to the lateness of the year, and the possibility of potential penalties they might face for noncompletion of the work that couldn't be completed before winter."
The projects will be postponed until spring 2020, at which time they will be retendered after prequalifications are completed.
