Budget translates into $78 increase on $250,000 home, budget to pass March

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Manager of engineering Todd Hewitt said once approved, they would tender as soon as possible but exact timelines would depend on who gets the contract.

Angstrom Dr. will be rehabilitated at an $850,000 price tag while $80,000 was earmarked for a study for a proposed multi-use trail on Middle Side Road from Walker Road to the Cypher Systems Greenway. Construction on the latter project would be next year.

About $850,000 of mill and pave work is planned for 2023 with four of the five streets in the Crown Ridge subdivision (Kentucky Ave. is the other).

Sanitary sewer upgrades and replacements will total almost $3.9 million with work including the Alma and Sandwich sewer separations and the George and Seymour streets sewer replacement.

Over $10.1 million was approved for upgrades at the Amherstburg Water Treatment Plant, something which Pouget said they had “no choice” but to do. She said council is obligated to provide clean water.

“We must do it,” she said.

The water grant project will be funded through the capital water reserves, development charges for water, a grant of over $3.6 million and over $3.7 million in debt recovery.

Fleet replacement carries a $365,000 budget, while a new Zamboni carries a $265,000 budgeted amount. Councillor Molly Allaire wanted the tender for a new Zamboni to include a possible electric Zamboni, believing there would be environmental and health benefits if the town could go that route.

A facilities condition and needs assessment was included in the capital budget at a $200,000 cost but $75,000 for a water re-circulation system maintenance was stricken from the budget.

The King’s Navy Yard extension received $150,000 for the hiring of a consultant to finish the design and tender documents. The town learned after extensive debate there are still approvals needed before the fencing can come down and the public can enjoy the site. An additional $3 million is proposed in the next couple of years for shoreline construction, pathways, drainage and power infrastructure so the site can finally be reopened.

Warren Mickle Park will get a new playground thanks to $300,000 being included in the capital budget while

$140,000 was included for tennis/pickleball courts at Anderdon Park with that being a tile system that can be laid down. That sparked debate over location of the courts.

Nothing was included for H. Murray Smith Centennial Park, something that Councillor Peter Courtney and Pouget voiced disappointment with. Director of parks, facilities, recreation and culture Heidi Baillargeon said that is in “a holding pattern” due to previous council direction regarding fundraising for a track. The question of how the track would be situated on the site is still open, she noted.

When deliberations resumed Tuesday, town council unanimously – with Allaire declaring conflict - approved striking $75,000 from the budget relating to the turf at the indoor facility at the Libro Centre. Deputy CAO Melissa Osborne said the study would be an “exhaustive undertaking” of the facility with some functionality limited in certain areas and components reaching end of life. Baillargeon added they were seeking a plan to assess special needs.

Courtney believed the town has to “move harder” on joint use agreements with local school boards. Councillor Don McArthur said “I want to keep the turf 100 per cent” but wanted to know how the town should decide where to put its money on recreationally. He added he has never received as many e-mails as this issue during his time on council.

“I think it’s the right thing to do,” said Prue. “People have spoken loudly and clearly.”

Prue added the Amherstburg Indoor Sports Association (AISA) has a good plan and “they should be listened to.”

After a wide ranging discussion, council approved a motion for upgrades at the Amherstburg Community Hub and 179 Victoria St. S., the latter for a senior centre. Up to $100,000 from the sale of property at 320 Richmond St. to Arch Corporation will be used for immediate use at the hub while $140,000 ($94,000 from parks reserve and $49,000 from a parks development charges reserve) will retrofit 179 Victoria St. S. Council voted unanimously on the latter motion as well.

“I think it’s a great idea,” said Deputy Mayor Chris Gibb. “I think it’s time to spend money on seniors. We’re spending a lot of money on youth.”

Councillor Don McArthur said seniors will be able to use the 179 Victoria St. S. building, the hub across the street and eventually the long-term home and programming can be robust for seniors in that area.

The River Town Times will publish more fulsome stories on some of the issues from the capital budget in a future issue. Deadline pressures resulted in this overview of some of the projects.

Prue said he was confident that council could trim at least one per cent off of the original 4.23 per cent and council members did the best they could to bring the tax rate increase down to three per cent. CFO Tracy Prince said the debt is about $28 million and there is a reserve balance of $22.8 million.

There were some 4-3 votes made by council members during the debates, with Prue noting he voted “on both sides” when breaking the ties.

“Council will never be unanimous on everything,” said Prue.

Prue added there was “a general cohesion and happiness” and the end of the meetings. He commended council members for their work and dedication throughout the process.

Several new positions were approved by town council while others were eliminated either by council or by senior management during the budgetary process. One approved position will be an asset management co-ordinator position at a total budgetary impact of $77,598. Salaries and benefits for the position are $122,729 but $49.092 would be covered through OCIF grant funding. That job will be responsible for asset data management and overall compliance with asset management legislation with Osborne telling council that having a position in-house gathering data could see a “drastic reduction” in costs when it comes to the next time an asset management plan is due to be developed.

Converting a part-time customer service representative to full-time was approved with a budget impact of $19,921. Gibb voted in favour, noting having someone on hand to greet customers is important as “if someone is not sitting there, people are going to be upset.” Prue mentioned having a human voice answer the phone when someone calls.

A senior financial analyst was approved as a one-time expense with the $95,000 in funding for salaries and benefits covered through a transfer from reserves. Administration stated in their budget paper the position would help fulfill recommendations in both the Deloitte report and the KPMG report with CAO Valerie Critchley stating it is one-time for this year with the option to bring it to council again next year.

Succession planning and cross-training was also a component of the position, with Councillor Don McArthur citing that as a reason he voted for it.

“It’s extremely important in a $56-million corporation like the Town of Amherstburg,” he said.

A request for a human resources co-ordinator, which would have had a $115,000 budget impact, was eliminated from the budget as was a $135,103 request for an IT security and systems administrator.

The town is converting 6.5 part-time general labourer positions at the Libro Centre to three full-time positions, something Courtney favoured as he believed it could lead to additional pride in their jobs and “you get more out of a full-time employee.”

The town approved a $107,807 budget request for an executive assistant position, with that position to be split between the Libro Centre and the building department. Gibb said the audit and finance position originally had “a misunderstanding of the position” but later came around to endorsing it as it was believed savings could be realized through a lesser need for consultants. Critchley said it was not “a structural layer” in management, but a job that will help move projects forward. In the budget paper, it was described as one that will meet with various groups and boards, develop standard operating procedures, administer security card access, aid in data collection, report writing, orchestrating open houses and strategic plan initiatives. Former interim CAO Tony Haddad introduced the position to the town in Oct. 2021, said Critchley, and Osborne said this would take the current contract position and make it full-time. Gibb, McArthur, and Councillor Linden Crain were in favour of going to full-time with McArthur stating the person had already worked for 18 months. Prue, Pouget, Courtney and Allaire voted for a one-year contract position to be funded from the tax stabilization reserve.

Council voted 4-3 in favour of a project management and technical support position with Prue voting with Gibb, Crain and McArthur this time. Baillargeon said the position will provide technical support in the field and help execute onsite project supervision and project management services. Prue believed the town would benefit through a reduction in the need for consultants.

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