Owen Sound has some money to spend.
The city is looking at a surplus of more than $534,500 from the last two years and now it also has a shopping list that will account for most of that money by the end of 2012.
Director of Financial Services Wayne Ritchie says a very mild winter and higher than estimated supplemental assessment and recycling revenues are mainly responsible for the windfall.
Ritchie says it will make it possible for the city to tackle a number of initiatives that need to be done.
Council on Monday night approved most of a report from Manager of Accounting Services Kate Allan that sums up the surplus — $343,600 from 2011 and just shy of $191,000 from 2010 — as well as what should be done with the money.
Senior staff, led by City Manager Ruth Coursey, came up with a list of priorities. First and foremost, the reserves will be topped up to the tune of 210 thousand dollars.
That includes 10 thousand dollars that was initially set aside for the grand opening of the Regional Rec Centre in September.
Council balked at that amount, considering a program for that event is not close to being finalized. The opening and how much will be spent on it will be addressed later.
But every other item on the list received council’s approval.
These items and their amounts are:
Council Chambers Improvements – $50,000
East Side Dock – $40,000
Accessibility Analysis and Training – $35,000
Geographical Information System – $35,000
Records Management System – $25,000
Trails Coordinator – $25,000
Sports Hall of Fame Upgrading – $20,000
New City Hall Furnishings – $20,000
Tom Thomson Art Gallery Cleanup and Skylight Modification – $15,000
1st Avenue West Sidewalk – $15,000
City Hall Cost Benefit Analysis – $7,500
Health and Safety Hazard Analysis – $6,000
Fire Services Administration Office Improvements – $5,000
Harrison Park 100th Birthday – $2,000
The total amount of these projects is $510,500.
This would leave approximately 25 thousand dollars, which can be retained until the city’s year-end audit is complete.
At that time, depending on whether or not adjustments need to be made, the remaining money could be allocated.
Council is particularly looking forward to improvements to their chambers, which Ritchie says probably haven’t been touched in 30 years.
Of particular concern are the leaks in the roof, the lighting and the acoustics, although he says it’s too early to say what form the improvements will take.
But, whatever is decided, the goal is to complete the upgrades and everything else on the list before the end of this year.
Mayor Deb Haswell says news of this surplus and plans for its use bode well for 2012, along with a number of developments scheduled to go ahead in the city.
She says the surplus is as rare as the mild winter that helped make it possible, and it’s important to use it intelligently and make sure some funds are still available for an emergency that might arise.
