The gears of bureaucracy — as everyone knows — often grind slowly, and following due process and diligence can lead to positive progress taking longer than many people might prefer.
Several members of the Sundre and District Aquatic Society’s board met again with council last week regarding the non-profit volunteer organization’s previous request to transfer operational responsibilities of the Aquaplex over to the municipality.
Despite initially feeling less than enthusiastic about council’s response following the first meeting on May 27, the board members seemed somewhat encouraged by the lengthy discussion’s direction during the June 10 meeting.
The board’s members will be meeting monthly with administration to get the ball rolling towards coming up with potential options to make feasible the transition of operations to the municipality from the society, which has expressed a commitment to remain involved as a fundraising arm for the multi-million-dollar facility.
Council was clear that while the effort and time invested by the volunteers who ensure the Aquaplex’s doors remain open is appreciated, the municipality must also consult with all stakeholders, including of course the community’s residents, before taking on any kind of substantial commitment. The impact on the budget's bottom line for now remains uncertain.
From that perspective, the society’s initial request for the town’s administration to present to council by the end of this month potential plans to transfer operations was a rather tall, and frankly unfeasible, order.
Any kind of public consultations, which should be included in the process, will take time. Advertising an open house alone requires a couple of weeks. Additional time is needed for staff to compile information gathered from residents into a comprehensive report to provide council the information needed to make a confident decision. That time frame doesn’t even account for all of the additional homework administration has cut out for it in terms of investigating funding options, staffing, and legal issues.
That being said, the society’s position that they do not desire seeing the process drag on for another couple of years, ending up passed along to the next council, is understandable.
So while the process will take longer than a month, we certainly hope council can be presented with viable options before the end of the year at worst and perhaps even by the end of summer or early fall should the stars align.
In the meantime, we’re glad to see the doors of discussion have swung open, that progress towards a potential plan is underway, and look forward to reporting on the proposals that eventually come to the surface.
— Ducatel is the Round Up’s editor
