LAC LA BICHE - A week after their request for about $140,000 in capital grant funding was turned down by Lac La Biche County councillors, representatives of the Lac La Biche Legion were back asking to have the decision revisited.
The initial funding request was to go towards a planned renovation at the lakeshore building that has housed the McGrane Branch #28 Lac La Biche Royal Canadian Legion for almost 100 years. The most recent renovations to the building were done 40 years ago.
"It's showing its age," said Ken Staples, the chairperson of the Legion's Building Committee.
Architectural class has ideas
Legion officials began the year by inviting a group of architecture students from the University of Calgary's School of Architecture to submit some ideas for a new-look building. Staples said there were some great concept ideas that came out of the class project. A few of the ideas will be followed up in the coming weeks when some of the students are expected to return for another site visit.
Telling Lakeland This Week that some of the ideas, like floor-to-ceiling walls of windows, spiral walkways, and modern architectural themes were fun, but too extravagant and expensive for basic renovation plans, he said the designs really got Legion members excited about some much-needed basic upgrades.
That excitement was dampened when councillors voted to exclude the Legion's two requests for capital funding at their April 4 meeting. One request was for $18,000 to cover the costs of the architectural students' current and future work, and the other was for $123,000 for renovation work to the Legion's kitchen, washrooms, ceiling, floors and electrical utilities. Both requests were included in the Lac La Biche County's 2023 Capital Projects Assistance Grants. Although administration had suggested partial payments to both, totalling about $40,000 due to some grant program eligibility shortfalls, councillors instead denied the funding requests entirely.
The municipality's capital grant program this year has an approved budget of $275,000. Applicants for the grants this year were requesting more than $1.4 million in capital requests.
The Legion's requests weren't denied because the program was over-subscribed, however, but because a councillor suggested the organization's request "didn't fit" the criteria.
"I don't see them fitting into this granting process, when they have so many avenues," said councillor Sterling Johnson, who made the motion on April 4 to exclude the Legion's two funding requests from the program. "They are a separate entity in the community."
With only councillors John Mondal, Charlyn Moore and Mayor Paul Reutov voting against the motion, the Legion's requests were removed from the list.
A week later Staples explained to council that the Legion is as much a community association as any other service group like the Kinsmen Club, the Elks or the Rotary Club.
"We are one of the original Legions to be formed in Canada and we have served this community for 97 years," he said. "Our Lac La Biche Legion prides itself on the support it provides to the Lac La Biche community,"he said, explaining that since 2015, the organization has donated $225,000 to community groups.
He said the Legion's primary function is to support veterans and active service members in all branches of the military, as well as police and first responders. He said the Legion is open to all members of the public and each branch operates independently from the national organization.
"We are no different here than the Kinsmen, the Elks, the Rotary and any service clubs that might be part of a national organization," he said. "We are self-sufficient and our focus is serving our community and not creating wealth."
Staples said he was asking council to reconsider their decision. Councillors are expected to discuss the request and come back to a future meeting with a decision.
Eleven community groups represented the 21 individual requests for capital grant funding this year. Some of the groups approved for funding included the Craigend Recreation and Ag Society with a $1650 request to build a new wall for closet storage, a $4,100 request from the Plamondon Museum Society to replace a concrete walkway, a $50,000 approval for the 5HV Club for building repairs and renovations, a $96,000 approval to the Lac La Biche Mission Historical Society to fix the roof on the convent building and $30,000 to the Owl River Recreation Association for a washroom renovation at the Owl River hall. The Owl River request was initially approved for $21,000 at the April 4 meeting, but Johnson made the request to "bump up" their funding to $30,000, to make sure the costs were covered.
Staples said if funding had been approved, he would have liked to have started the renovations this year, with the hope of wrapping it up before 2026 and to the 100 year anniversary of the organization in Lac La Biche.
