SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
Mayor Mark Heyck expressed concerns Monday evening about some of the cuts made by city council to reach a zero property tax increase, calling some decisions "rash" and "troubling."

Jeff Dalley, the city's director of corporate services, talks about how cuts made last week to the proposed budget impact property taxes on Thursday. - Shane Magee/NNSL photo

The mayor made the comments Monday after council unanimously approved the $79.6 million capital and operating spending plan for 2016.

The draft budget, before council began making cuts and additions, had proposed a 2.87 per cent property tax increase.

The city will spend $20.4 million on capital projects, with the largest being road, water and sewer work.

A plan to spend $1.6 million next year on the controversial downtown 50/50 lot revitalization was pushed back to 2017.

The mayor reiterated his disappointment that council cut the $570,000 plan for a splash park adjacent to Somba K'e Civic Plaza, saying he'd be proposing it for the 2017 budget.

Deneen Everett, Yellowknife Chamber of Commerce executive director, said the group representing businesses in the community was pleased by another year without a tax increase.

"I'm excited to go back to my members tomorrow and tell them that the zero per cent tax increase they asked for, they got," she said Monday evening.

"I think some of the decisions made around the community energy plan in particular are a little bit rash," Heyck said.

The plan includes projects aimed at reducing spending on energy and the city's carbon footprint.

Councillors cut smaller-ticket items - consultation on energy projects, solar panels for the Fieldhouse and heat pumps - totalling $192,000 and instead opted on the fly to buy a $1 million wood pellet boiler system for the Fieldhouse, Multiplex and a pumphouse.

It will add another $85,909 to the operating budget to pay for a staff position to maintain the system. The boiler is projected to save the city $23,800 per year in heating fuel costs. Coun. Niels Konge voted in favour of the move.

"I'd rather spend money on things we know work, things we know get a good return on investment,"he said.

Heyck called a decision to cut a computer program to track bylaw enforcement officers for $67,000 "troubling," saying the technology would've made the city's emergency dispatch centre more efficient and aided officer safety.

The mayor said he had concerns about the move by council Monday to trim spending in the operating budget by $271,000 and leaving it to staff to figure out where to make those cuts.

He said that could harm delivery of services for residents and that increases to operations spending, cited by Coun. Adrian Bell as the reason for seeking cuts, can be traced to past decisions of council.

The mayor handed off his non-voting chairmanship to comment on Bell's proposal Monday afternoon.

He cast a vote against the move, as did Couns. Julian Morse, Linda Bussey and Shauna Morgan.

Deputy mayor Rebecca Alty cast the tie-breaking vote in favour of the cut.

Administration's plan to carry out $1.6 million of work around the 50/50 lot was pushed back a year as councillors expressed concern last week with putting the funds on the books for 2016 without a clear vision of the project.

"I believe further consultation needs to be done. I know a lot of people don't want to hear that," said Bell, who moved the motion to defer the work.

Another report is expected to be presented to council in January about the most recent round of consultation held this fall which included the idea of building a library/arts and culture centre on the lot.

Thursday evening during a committee meeting, Konge moved a motion by speakerphone to cut a new $50,900 per year expense for a fire code inspector.

When structures bigger than a single family home are proposed, the plans must be reviewed for fire code compliance by the territorial fire marshal. Administration included the position in the budget in hopes of reaching an agreement with the GNWT, with the ultimate goal of streamlining permit approvals.

Konge decried the existing permit system and questioned whether the city would really be able to handle the work. As he was speaking by phone Heyck looked at the ceiling of the council chamber and shook his head. Council voted to cut the position.

After all the cuts, council opted to increase a budget line by about 25 per cent meant to deal with a backlog of 60-plus broken water and sewer lines to homes and businesses.

It means an extra $250,000 for 2016 and then again in 2017 to address the broken lines. The plan is to address 30 or so breaks next year and have the list finished in the following year.

After all the cuts and additions, council was left with a potential tax decrease.

While there was discussion of allocating the money to deal with some water, sewer or repaving work sooner than planned, council opted to move the remaining money into the capital fund.

That meant no tax change and that the money could be used if bids for planned capital projects next year come in higher than expected.

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