CARSTAIRS – At its regular meeting on Dec. 12, council approved the 2016 operating budget as the 2017 interim budget.
“Basically it gives us the ability to keep moving forward and pay the bills until we get the final assessment from the assessor and the numbers from the province,” said CAO Carl McDonnell.
“Once we get those we'll finalize the 2017 budget.”
McDonnell said the town does not expect to have many changes to the operating budget.
“The areas we're looking at are those areas that will be impacted by the carbon tax,” he said. “Fuel costs. Of course, diesel is one of our biggest costs. That will go up. Street lighting, heating and power for all the town facilities.”
McDonnell said the town wouldn't know for sure the impact of the carbon tax until the province sets the rates the first of the year (Jan. 1).
“Then we'll have to look at our usage in each facility and for equipment,” he said.
The capital budget is still being reviewed, said McDonnell. He expects the town will spend about $500,000 on street improvements as well as money for needed equipment.
In other council news, council re-signed a membership agreement with Mountain View Regional Waste Management Commission.
“The membership agreement is an agreement that was already in place with the member municipalities,” he said. “The waste commission is becoming a signatory to that agreement.”
McDonnell said that the waste services agreement sets into place what the town commits to, what the waste commission commits to, what type of waste is accepted at the landfill and what isn't.
The town has signed an agreement with Fortis to change the street lighting from the current lighting to LED lighting.
“They have an increased cost for changing them out but that will be over 15 years,” he said. “Because we're going to LED there will be an energy savings so it should net itself out.”
Council voted to allow parking in the Stonebridge subdivision in an area that normally doesn't allow parking.
“We did a part of the roadway with no parking on the south side of Stonegarden Drive,” he said. “We sent a letter out to the homeowners along there that while we're reviewing it and over the Christmas season we'll allow parking there.”
Council voted to send a letter to the premier of Alberta and the minister of health stating concerns about the closure of the cardiac program at Didsbury Hospital.
"Basically it gives us the ability to keep moving forward and pay the bills until we get the final assessment from the assessor and the numbers from the province."Carl McDonnell, CAO.
