Public input sought in upcoming city budget discussions

News — 12 January 2011

The City of Dryden is encouraging residents to attend the Jan. 17 Open Council meeting where council will solicit the public’s input into the draft 2011 budget.

The first draft report was presented to council at the Jan. 10 Committee of the Whole meeting, outlining a high level summary of the first draft of the operating and capital municipal and waterworks budget.

Budget processes are normally undertaken in November, but due to elections, the budget review process has been extended into January to allow the new council the opportunity to be fully involved in the budget process.

For the 2011 Capital Budget process, staff was cautioned on the limited funds available for capital projects in light of the tough economic times in the region as well as the loss of tax assessment from the large industrial sector.

The budget report outlines some of the capital projects in the first draft including the ball diamond project, completion of the new industrial areas, ongoing construction of the sewage treatment plant, and the replacement of four vehicles in the city fleet.

Other capital projects included were street upgrades, sewer replacements, facility maintenance, and various sports-related costs such as phase one of the arena renovations, tennis courts in Rotary Park and a new outdoor fitness park.

Some of the projects listed for the waterworks department included upgrades to the water treatment plant, completion of the water meter installs, and design and costing for reservoir expansion.

The operating budget should see no fee or service charge increases except for the water and sewer rates, which are proposed to increase by five per cent effective July 1, 2011.

Two new positions are to be added for staffing, one for an event coordinator and one for a cultural planner.

The public is welcome to attend the Jan. 17 meeting to share their opinions, or comments can be e-mailed to budget2011@dryden.ca.

By Ally Dunham

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