Following the approval of the 2016 base budget for Rocky View County (RVC) on Dec. 8, some residents are protesting the inclusion of a $42 million municipal building through an online petition that has already collected about 300 signatures.
According to the anonymous residents behind the petition, the “luxury” administration building is an “utter waste of taxpayer’s money.” While $32 million of the cost for the new facility will be covered by approved Municipal Sustainability Initiative (MSI) funding, an additional $10 million will come from RVC itself.
“Flooding, drainage infrastructure, recreation – there are so many things in RVC that require attention,” said Gloria Wilson, a Springbank resident who signed the petition nearly as soon as it was created on Dec. 12. “My house needs a lot of repairs too, but I don’t have the bottomless pockets of the taxpayers to help me pay for it.”
RVC Reeve Greg Boehlke said the belief touted in the “goofy” petition, that repairs to the County’s current facility would cost only $1.6 million, is “totally erroneous.” According to Boehlke, that estimate would cover only minor repairs – including “patching up” the heat and air conditioning systems, fixing electrical issues, and some new flooring.
“This building is 40 years old, and even though it has been maintained very well by the County, we need a new building,” he said, “It’s a good decision to move out, and we plan to try to bring it in way under budget.”
According to RVC’s Communications Manager Grant Kaiser, a new facility will provide a range of benefits to the County – and to residents. The plan is to construct the facility on County-owned land near Balzac, which Kaiser said will: eliminate the time County staff spend in Calgary traffic before getting out into the County to do their jobs; improve overall operational efficiency by locating most of the County’s operations at one location; improve the service provided to residents with better parking, faster response times and more efficient service desks; reduce staff turnover by providing “reasonable workspaces that accommodate modern technology;” and provide opportunities to share building amenities with County-based community groups.
“(RVC) will not be building a palace or an architectural gem,” Kaiser said. “The existing building does not meet the building code, and would require substantial changes. Plus, by moving to the Balzac site, the County can sell the prime Calgary land the current building sits on.”
Councillor Jerry Arshinoff made a motion during the budget discussion to remove the controversial item, which failed 7-2 – supported only by Arshinoff and Councillor Margaret Bahcheli. He said while he doesn’t know who originated the petition, he was pleased to learn about it.
“It is wonderful to see so many residents starting to demand reason, accountability and responsibility from RVC council,” he said in an email to Rocky View Weekly. “At the best of times, the new building would be a colossal waste of money – and now is certainly not the best of times. Council is certainly aloof, oblivious or unconcerned about the financial difficulties currently faced by Albertans in general and RVC residents in particular.”
Wilson said she hopes the petition will “put a halt” to the project, and encourage RVC to use the funding for other infrastructure projects – to free up additional money to pay off some of the County’s “astronomical” debt.
However, according to Kaiser, as the petition currently doesn’t meet the Municipal Government Act’s (MGA) criteria, it “has no standing” with RVC. He said while petitions are a normal part of the democratic process, the MGA requires they be signed by at least 10 per cent of the municipality’s population.
“Councillors can consider the petition as background information,” Kaiser said. “The County helps residents understand how to prepare proper petitions, and the proponents can get in touch with the County if they’d like this help.”
