Cranbrook city council is getting down to work on a five-year plan that will see council and senior staff meet with each and every department to hammer out budget priorities.
Council has scheduled two days — Wednesday, Jan. 18 and Thursday, Jan. 19 — to hold budget deliberations starting at 8:45 a.m. at city hall.
Senior management, including David Kim, the Chief Administrative Officer, and Charlotte Osborne, the Director of Finance and Computer Services, will open the meeting, while seven other departments will follow with their presentations.
Bigger ticket items include:
• Leisure services — the city will be replacing the roof at Western Financial Place at a budgeted cost of $3 million from 2017-2018.
• Fire and Emergency Services is planning on replacing a ladder truck in 2019 at a cost of $1.4 million
• Infrastructure Planning and Delivery will see a big boost in 2017 due to voter approval of a $10 million loan. The city is planning $15 million in spending on the 2017 capital projects program that includes roads, storm sewers, sidewalks, water and sewers. In 2019, the city is budgeting $6 million for a Transfer Pipeline Upgrade for Spray Irrigation, while the city is planning on budgeting $20 million for a water treatment plant in 2021 and $7 million for the Gold Creek Dam.
In addition to reports from each city department, there will also be other presentations on grants to organizations, transit services and borrowing.
Other topics will also include revenues — non-tax revenue and transfers from other governments and organizations — while also looking at reserves and accumulated surpluses.
The public is encouraged to attend the meeting in council chambers and submit comments in writing afterwards, which will be reviewed and researched before presentation to council at a later budget meeting.
Once budget deliberations are finished, a draft financial plan will be posted on the city website for further public comments.
The deadline for feedback to the five-year financial plan is Monday, Jan. 23 at 4 p.m.