After the cuts, what's left?
Despite reductions, city council still has millions of spending planned for next year
Shane Magee
Northern News Services
Friday, December 18, 2015
SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
City councillors acknowledged the 2016 budget passed Monday after more than $1.5 million was cut, represents a "lean" spending plan.
"I recognize this was a pretty lean budget. We have work to do to ensure we're not underfunding replacement of our assets," said Coun. Adrian Bell at Monday's council meeting.
"(We) put forward the budget that's best for Yellowknife right now," said Coun. Julian Morse.
Mayor Mark Heyck expressed concerns about some of the cuts made to reach a zero tax increase.
So, after all the cuts and additions to the 2016 budget - what's still in it? Yellowknifer has prepared an overview of what the city approved.
The big ticket items left as-is can largely be found in the road paving, landfill, and water and sewer categories.
There are three road paving projects planned.
Franklin Avenue between 41 Street and Wiley Road is expected to cost $2 million. In Kam Lake, paving Etthen Drive and Taltheilei Drive will cost $500,000. Cameron Road, also in Kam Lake, will see $350,000 of work.
Construction of a new cell at the landfill will cost $3.5 million, which is expected to last seven years. Also at the landfill, the compost system will be expanded at a cost of $750,000. That includes providing green curbside bins for the Frame Lake area of the city and expanding the compost storage pad at the landfill.
Water and sewer replacement work will cost $3.5 million, which includes $1.2 million in paving work.
The main work will be done along Con Road from Rycon Drive to 54 Street where aging metal pipes will be replaced next year. The work will continue into 2017 for a total cost of $3 million.
Forrest Drive, where water and sewer work was done this year, will be paved at a cost of $500,000.
Horton Crescent will also be paved for the same reason at $700,000 this year.
Total spending on information technology capital projects was reduced by seven per cent to $333,600.
That includes money for upgrading the city's data network, website and cell phone app enhancements, more security cameras, new cameras for bylaw enforcement vehicles, multi-function printers and computer server upgrades.
A staff washroom will be built in the library at a cost of $57,000, which the budget states is to meet Occupational Health and Safety regulations.
Because resurfacing of the McMahon Frame Lake Trail was cut, an $80,000 grant for that work is now expected to be split between two projects. Some will cover the projected $60,000 cost to replace playground equipment at Doornbos Park. Council also opted to use some to fund the YK Rotary Park trail extension. The budget for that was increased by $7,000 to $20,000.
Coun. Niels Konge pointed out that instead of spreading upgrades to washrooms and floors at city hall over three years, the work could be combined into one year and the city could save money.
Instead of spending $20,000 over the next three years - for a total of $60,000 - on upgrades, the city will instead spend $50,000 to get the work done in 2016.
About $125,000 will be spent for further wild-fire mitigation work. The city also plans to hire a consultant to create a master plan for the fire department at a cost of $110,000. That plan would lay out issues with coverage and response times, suggest possible expansions such as a satellite fire hall in the future and look at the services the department currently provides versus the type of services the city requires.
The fire hall itself will undergo a check by a structural engineer. There have been cracks forming in walls and in concrete, which administration worries could lead to the bay doors being stuck, preventing fire trucks from leaving the structure. The city budgeted $80,000 for the engineering report and any required repairs.
There's $92,000 to be spent on new parking meters next year.
"As far as I'm concerned I'm done with meters as soon as this is done," public safety director Dennis Marchiori told council, during an exchange about how many more parking meters residents can expect.
He said the poles would be installed in July or August followed by the actual meters likely in September. He said a two-hour meter pays for itself in about two years.
The city's traffic lights once used a dial-up modem to link to city hall so traffic patterns could be monitored and lights programmed to speed the flow of traffic.
However, that system broke down and no longer works. The city will spend $360,000 over three years to install traffic light cameras at intersections.
The cameras would allow video monitoring of the intersections and would let the city change traffic light timing depending on traffic demands and to sync lights.
There are 18 lighted intersections in the city. The cameras would be installed over seven years. The cost per intersection is about $35,000. The cameras do not function as red-light cameras that would ticket those who blow through intersections.
During early deliberations, Konge also sought to have several additional stop signs added to the intersection of 49 Street and 49 Avenue.
He also suggested stop signs at Kam Lake Road and Finlayson Drive, however public works and engineering director Chris Greencorn said there are plans to address that intersection, likely with traffic lights, when Kam Lake is repaved in 2017. Paving Finlayson to Deh Cho Boulevard and the intersection work is expected to cost $1.75 million that year.
The process to figure out how administration will cut $271,000 from the general fund has yet to be determined, according to an e-mail Wednesday from city spokesperson Nalini Naidoo. The mayor had expressed concerns with the way council ordered that cut.
