Due to a budgeting error, council here reluctantly agreed to use funds set aside for bridges and culverts to cover the cost of new lights and light poles in a downtown Drayton parking lot.
In a report at the Oct. 22 meeting, public works director Larry Lynch explained that during the fall of 2012 public works staff initiated a significant reconstruction of the Drayton public parking lot, located on Main Street across from the Drayton fire station.
Work on the project was hampered by wet weather and the lighting work, which was budgeted for in 2012, was not completed until this year.
“In August of 2013, three months after the lighting work was completed, we received an invoice of $30,960.14 from Murray’s Electric. This invoice is correct, however, I neglected to include sufficient funds in the 2013 capital budget to cover the cost,” Lynch explained.
He noted reconstruction projects have “significant unknowns” and are often difficult to estimate.
“It goes both ways though. For example, the ditching and piping carried out in 2012 on Sideroad 21 was estimated to cost $150,000 by our engineers; our staff completed this work at an ultimate cost of $65,657,” he explained.
The original budget for the parking lot, which came from the roads budget, was $100,000 in 2012 and another $35,000 added for paving in 2013 – for a total of $135,000.
The final cost of all work, excluding lighting, was $135,177, a difference of $177.
Rather than exhausting all funds in the township’s street light reserves, Lynch recommended the lighting invoice be paid by transferring funds from the 2013 bridge and culvert capital account. Lynch pointed out the approved budget for this year’s bridge rehabilitation program is $426,000, all funded from bridge capital reserves, and the current contract for bridge work is 90 per cent complete with a balance in that account of $160,824.
“There will be a surplus in this account at the end of the year that would go back to the reserve for future bridge work. It would be simplest to use these approved 2013 funds to pay this invoice rather than draining down other reserves,” he suggested.
Councillor Neil Driscoll stated he was “totally against” taking the funds out of the bridge account.
“We can’t replace bridges as it is,” said Driscoll, who said to Lynch, “You find it somewhere in your budget.”
Lynch responded, “I don’t know where else to take it [from]. There really isn’t a lot of fluff anywhere.”
Mayor Bruce Whale said he was “somewhat hesitant” to see the bridge and culvert funds used for the parking lot project.
“This was a beautification; an urban upgrade,” Whale pointed out.
CAO Patty Sinnamon said the money would have to come from a reserve fund. Taking it out of the operating budget was not an option, she explained, because tax rates for 2013 have already been set.
“I don’t think you have an option but to take it out of a reserve – which reserve is semantics, if you will,” she stated.
Lynch urged council to “keep in mind that the money that we have in our account this year for bridge work was $450,000 based on (engineering) estimates. Through modifications, we did everything we planned to do, and saved $160,000.”
Whale responded, “For me, and I’m sure for councillor Driscoll too, it’s the perception. It’s been the objective of this council to build up a bit of a reserve in bridges and culverts and we don’t want to see it pulled out for lights.”
Councillor Mike Downey pointed out, “it shouldn’t come from the lighting budget either, because that’s area rated.”
Councillor Jim Curry suggested the funds come out of the working capital reserve. However finance director Yufang Du pointed out about $300,000 from working capital was spent on work on the sewage lagoon system this year.
“I don’t know if we have enough in that account,” said Du.
Sinnamon suggested referring the matter to the township’s management team.
However, when the mayor called for a vote on a resolution to accept Lynch’s recommendation to take the money from bridge and culvert reserves, the motion passed with only Driscoll opposed.
