Elected officials were recently split down the middle on whether to approve a facility rental fee waiver for Elkridge Archery Club.
With a council absence leaving only six members during the April 23 meeting, a three versus three vote split resulted in a defeated motion. Coun. Todd Dalke was unable to attend because he was a chaperone on the Grade 8 West Coast sailing trip.
The archery club located south of Sundre hosted the 2018 Canadian Indoor 3D Archery Championships April 28-29 which brought out shy of 300 competitors to the Sundre Arena, curling rink and high school gym with an opening ceremony held at the community centre.
Council had previously supported a motion to approve a donation of upwards of about $2,100 to purchase drawstring backpacks that would be distributed at the event to promote the Town of Sundre.
But Linda Nelson, chief administrative officer, informed council the bags were covered with a cost of only about $624 allocated to the archery club.
“So we are requesting that the balance of the $2,100 go towards a fee waiver for the facilities that they’ll be using, which would bring the donation up to $2,049,” said Nelson.
Coun. Richard Warnock tabled a motion to that effect, initiating a discussion.
Coun. Cheri Funke spoke against the motion. She had previously supported the initial motion to cover the cost of the backpacks, but added that similar donations offered in the past to help different organizations were generally in the ballpark of $500.
“The rest of the money could be saved for the next person that comes asking for a donation for their event,” said Funke, referring to the balance of about $1,500.
Warnock understood where Funke was coming from, but said that having been involved with Elkridge Archery Club organizers, he had personally seen how hard they worked to promote the archery event as well as Sundre.
“And they’re really hoping to get the World Archery Championships here in Sundre in the future, which would put a huge event of 600-plus archers on the table,” said Warnock, adding that offering the club further support would not hurt.
“We’re not setting a precedent here. Every motion is individual, and whether we do something in the future is a council decision, but I do support this motion.”
Mayor Terry Leslie spoke in favour of the motion because the archery championship was the first event of its kind for Sundre.
“If we want to generate return events, it’s an excellent way to try and do that,” he said, also recognizing that there are other organizations struggling to make ends meet that council could consider finding ways to support.
Coun. Rob Wolfe sought clarification on the recommended motion’s background.
“Was this request by the archery club or is this just us doing this out of goodwill?” he asked.
Nelson said the request was brought forward through administration.
The mayor called a vote on the motion, which was defeated. Funke, Wolfe and Coun. Charlene Preston voted against, while Warnock, Leslie and Coun. Paul Isaac were in favour.
The mayor said the split on council is representative of elected officials attempting to balance their desire to support groups such as Elkridge Archery Club while at the same time keeping in mind local organizations that are struggling, and he sought no further action on the matter.
