Council approved a 6.3 per cent increase in water, sewer and waste utility rates for 2016 at its Dec. 7 meeting. Unlike the budget, council does not solely control the rates as these are based on rates set by the service provider – the City of Calgary.
Shannon Schindeler, team leader, Utility Administration, told council rates for residents of Calgary had already been set and would be “in excess of nine per cent.”
The increases will mean the average Airdrie homeowner will pay an additional $109 per year for water, sewer and waste management. Water rates will increase from $39.90 to $40.85 per utility bill, sewer rates from $39.75 to $45.06 per utility bill and waste management fees will increase from $23.52 to $23.80 per utility bill in 2016.
According to Corporate Communications, the full budget should be available online in March. A synopsis is currently available at airdrie.ca
Loan Approved
Airdrie City council approved second and third readings of a loan bylaw and debenture bylaw at its Dec. 7 meeting, paving the way for construction of the new Airdrie Housing Ltd. (AHL) building on Edmonton Trail at the site of the old RCMP detachment.
Under the debenture and loan bylaws, the City will loan $8 million to AHL. The total cost of the project is estimated at $10,172,880 with the additional $2,172,880 coming from a provincial Municipal Block Funding capital grant.
“AHL is owned by the City of Airdrie. We have a great opportunity to borrow money at a long-term rate and rates right now are very low,” Mayor Peter Brown said.
“I don’t know what the 20-year debenture will be but we expect it to certainly be under four per cent for that period of time.”
As reported in the Dec. 2 edition of the Airdrie City View, construction of the new 36,000 square foot building has begun with demolition of the old detachment.
The new three-storey building will include a minimum of 15 affordable housing units, including two barrier-free units, and 12,000 sq. ft. of retail space.
Councillor Allan Hunter voted against motions to accept the bylaws, saying he would prefer to wait until the retail units had firm tenants. The building is not expected to be ready for occupancy until March 2017, according to AHL Managing Director Shelley Sweet.
Now that council has approved the bylaws, AHL and the City will sign a loan agreement and promissory note to make the arrangement official and legally binding. Under the agreement, AHL will have 20 years to repay the debt.
Change of title
Council voted to approve a change that will see aldermen now referred to as councillors.
Manager of Legislative Services Sharon Pollyck presented council with information staff had collection from other municipalities regarding what members of the councils are called.
“We took a look at our comparable communities – Red Deer, St. Albert, Grande Prairie, Lethbridge and Medicine Hat – and we found that all of those communities are using the title of councillor,” she said.
Pollyck told council the estimated costs to make the change – including updating business cards and the website – would be less than $500 and could be completed before the end of 2015.
Proclamations
Council unanimously approved proclaiming January 2016 Kindness Month in Airdrie. The proposal was put forth by a group in Airdrie called the 30 Acts of Kindness.
A letter from Wellness Alberta asking for support for the establishment of a provincial wellness foundation was reviewed by council and filed in correspondence.
