Not so, it's all about how our tax money is supposed to get spent. Heiman has an explosive sentence at the end of her article, which perhaps gives an indication of her train of thought on this issue: "It fills one with despair about the city's ability to take leadership on real issues."
The article:
Folks who dump sofas ding us for $97,800
Odd little items crop up as city's politicians go over 2008 budget
Carolyn Heiman, Times Colonist
Published: Sunday, January 27, 2008
Watching City of Victoria politicians sift through hold-the-line budget figures is ... well ... a yawn.
But between the numbers are interesting stories. Take last week's preview of the 2008 operating budget during which we learn about the cost of birthday parties, misplaced sofas and other odd tidbits. We begin here with B.C.'s birthday celebrations.
- Everybody loves a party, especially if you're paid overtime to attend. The city is setting aside $60,000 for B.C. Day celebrations on Aug. 4. The money's not to cover cake. That's the cost of paying police and other staff overtime to work the statutory holiday expected to have special events in honour of the province's 150th birth-day. "Maybe we should put it off until next year," Coun. Sonya Chandler jokingly mused.
- Although there are Pollyannas out there when it comes to our real estate and construction market (Edit: Sid Tafler, anyone?), city planning staff are projecting that revenues from planning department fees will drop by more than 40 per cent or $200,000 next year as a result of fewer projects coming through the door.
- Meanwhile, the engineering department feels the pinch of escalating construction costs, said to have jumped by 40 to 50 per cent. Gravel alone has increased 7.5 per cent.
- If you imagine the parks department is in charge of planting petunias and the engineering department the go-to place for potholes, think again. Those departments both put in supplementary budget requests totalling $64,800 and all related to dealing with homeless issues. Parks staff say they can't keep up with cleaning up homeless campsites and engineering wants more for street cleaning.
- Although council nixed the idea of a needle drop box program last year, a pilot project involving five drop boxes is forging ahead under one of the strategies developed in the Mayor's Task Force on Breaking the Cycle of Mental Illness, Addictions and Homelessness. Engineering estimates staffing costs to empty the boxes at $22,400 a year.
- Meanwhile, soggy sofas abandoned on boulevards is prompting a $97,800 request for staff to pick them up.
- It's a municipal election year and that no doubt explains council orders to staff to keep the operating budget within two per cent of last year. It is hard, after all, to get re-elected on a platform of raising taxes. The exceptions to the two per cent will be salaries that are up three to four per cent under already negotiated collective agreements and the projected jump in the police budget as a result of their request for 22 more officers.
- Twelve months ago Victoria police were soothing ruffled councillors with assurances that their budget hike to cover burgeoning overtime costs would be a one-time event. Last year, they said they'd be asking for a 1.78 per cent hike, or $1.4 million more. Instead, they want almost $3.9 million more. They're expected to do some explaining Feb. 7.
- Also on the election theme, Chandler sent signals that she's ready to get off the fence on whether she'll run again in November when she questioned whether previouly approved salary increases for councillors were reflected in the budget. The answer is yes, but they take effect for the new council in December 2008. She also wants money spent on getting more people out to vote. The city is budgeting $120,000 to run the 2008 election.
- The fire department wants to hire two firefighters in 2008 and 2009. Chief Doug Angrove said workers' compensation regulations, taller buildings and an aging population are fuelling the need. It takes more manpower to assist elderly people in highrises to exit during a fire call, he explained. Angrove said he's exploring cost savings that could come from merging firefighting and ambulance dispatch operations. The two agencies often show up at the same calls.
Stay tuned for more revelations on the capital budget.
After thoughts: Last year, the startup North Park Neighborhood Association begged the city to erect a bulletin board to help the group develop the neighbourhood. Council got off pretty lucky considering the area plays host to the troublesome Vancouver Island Needle Exchange -- the association rightly could have been demanding more complicated fixes to some of their community issues. Months later, the city is still bumbling around trying to figure out which pot of money the bulletin board should be pulled from. The matter came up for the third time last week with no solution. It fills one with despair about the city's ability to take leadership on real issues.