The city will have to decide what to do with an $8 million windfall it received as part of the new federal budget.
That money, which is part of a 2.2 billion allotment the feds announced for municipalities in Tuesday’s budget, can be used for a wide range of projects, ranging from sewers and roads recreation facilities and the cleaning up of brownfield areas.
Part of the debate will be whether the city spends it on projects already in the 10-year capital plan or does it look for other ways it might be used?
“That’s a discussion we’re going to have to have with staff, council and the community,” Mayor Cam Guthrie said in an interview.
“I have a feeling that this extra money will probably become a moment of conversation for council as to whether we do allocate this money toward the laid out 10-year capital plan, and those specific projects, or is there something else that we can do to use that money that may be outside that 10-year captial forecast?”
Guthrie said potential options could be cleaning up brownfield sites like IMICO or moving up the proposed bike park for the east side that is nine years away from being built right now.
“Maybe with this funding, now, council could have a discussion to move that forward? Nine months instead of nine years. Or maybe two years. That type of thing,” Guthrie said.
Or it could be used to potentially reduce the tax impact of the 1 per cent infrastructure tax levy put in place to address a backlog of infrastructure needs.
“This is a discussion we should have as a council,” the mayor said.
“When we receive money from upper levels of government that can relieve the burden on the taxpayers of Guelph,” he said. “When we receive this type of money, it’s the kind of funding that really starts to help with that infrastructure backlog.”
The money will come in the form of a one-time payment as part of the annual federal gas tax program.
Gas tax funds can be used for infrastructure, transportation, clean environment and sports, recreational, cultural and tourism projects.
When the city will get the money remains to be seen.
“We’re not sure whether the money is going to come in a month or in 10 months. We don’t know. But we do know that we’re going to be receiving it,” Guthrie said.
He said what is interesting about this funding is that it came straight to the municipalities, not through the province.
“This is a signal of this type of direct funding that says ‘we trust you cities, we’re going to give you the funding directly and you know best what your community needs.’
“It signals a shift that we are being looked on as a partner with the federal government and I’m very pleased about that,” Guthrie said.
