Lloydminster City Hall. File Photo
City councillors weighed in on the city’s plan to borrow $3.1 million to construct a maintenance shed at the Lloydminster Golf and Curling Centre following the receipt of a citizens’ petition opposing the borrowing bylaw.
At Monday’s council meeting, it was noted a petition with 406 signatures was presented to the city by Lloydminster resident Kurt Hutchings on Feb. 14, but it fell short of the 3,158 names required under the city’s charter for 10 per cent of qualified electors.
“As the petition did not meet the requirements set forth in the charter, it has no binding effect on council, and is presented as information only,” city manager Dion Pollard told council.
“It should be acknowledged that even though the petition did not meet the requirements outlined in the charter, those who initiated and signed the petition should be recognized for their engagement in the governance process,” he said.
The borrowing bylaw is expected to be back on the agenda of council’s March 11 meeting with second thoughts expressed by some councillors.
Councillor David Lopez who was sworn into office last week following his recent by-election win told council the $3.1 million cost is being talked about everywhere he goes.
“Everywhere you go people are like ‘how are we spending this kind of money’,” he said.
“I even had a phone call today from a small business owner who was sitting there going ‘I’m going to have to close down. My taxes are going up, my triple net (lease) is going up, and I have a $1,800 bill that I have to go through. I have to talk to my landlord—how do I pay this off over five months because I don’t have the money to pay for it.’”
Lopez thinks the $3.1 M borrowing amount for a shed is too much for some taxpayers to bear.
“I think it’s excessive. Administration calls it modest. I think as council, we need to sit down and say ‘Is this a need or a want?’ Now it looks like a want to me, not a need,” said Lopez.
“We’ve got to look at other golf courses. If you talk to Rolling Green they don’t have this, if you talk to Sandy Beach, they don’t have this.”
Counc. Jason Whiting was a little more conciliatory, noting he appreciates the petition coming forth to council as information and that it’s tough to sign up 10 percent of qualified electors.
“What this does do, in my mind, is show some concern by citizens for the borrowing bylaw and the Lloydminster Golf and Curling Centre maintenance shop,” he said.
“It shows a great example of people paying attention to what’s going on in our city.
The issue left Counc. Jonathan Torresan pondering what’s next, while not jumping to any conclusions.
“It’s definitely an issue that’s got some hair on it for me. It’s not a slam dunk; I’m struggling with this borrowing bylaw a little bit,” said Torresan.
He thinks the petition demonstrates a little more work needs to be done before anything is official, but he’s not sure if the 406 signatures are enough to change anyone’s decision.
“The fact there’s that much effort going into it (petition) really is a symptom of a potential issue,” he cautioned.
“More than anything, we as council have to take a serious look at this project and how we’re funding it.”
