Council approves 2023 budget at December 22, 2022 meeting

Budget modernizes County infrastructure and sets municipality up for new investments and growth

 

After holding six special meetings dedicated to budget deliberations, Lac La Biche County Council approved the 2023 municipal budget at the December 22, 2022, Special Council Meeting. Operating expenditures for 2023 are set at $63,045,906, and new capital spending is $42,645,819. This approved budget is based on a 2.64% total tax revenue increase (subject to changes in property assessment). Proposed tax revenues were raised to balance the budget and maintain the County’s high service levels, but Council will decide on municipal tax rates in spring 2023.

 

Lac La Biche County strove to find efficiencies. For instance, County staff are taking over operations of the Biological Nutrient Removal (BNR) Plant in 2023, which is expected to save the municipality more than $500,000 annually over the next several years.

 

Debt financing was considered for strategic projects providing benefits to the entire County, improving residents’ quality of life, and attracting tourists to our region.

 

In addition to a debenture for $12 million approved in 2022 for the new Aquatics Centre (estimated to total $27 million, with $15 million in grant funding, and planned to be open at the Bold Center by 2025) and a $16.4 million debenture approved in 2022 for the Lac La Biche Main Street Revitalization Project, Council considered two more debentures in 2023. Due to a significant rise in construction prices, the Lac La Biche Main Street Revitalization Project is expected to cost more than the previously estimated $27 million—options to fund the remaining amount will be brought to Council in the New Year. The McArthur Park project, which will transform the space with more recreational features like a skate park, is proposed as a debenture for $6.3 million and will be phased in over 3 years (rather than the originally planned 5 years). Two bylaws will be brought forward to allow the County to borrow funds for these projects.

 

Other 2023 budget highlights include:

• $2 million for 101A Street and 104 Avenue water and sewer replacement, and $808,000 for 105 Street water and sewer replacement, both in the hamlet of Lac La Biche. Over time, this work will reduce the likelihood of water main breaks and the operating costs needed to make necessary repairs on aging infrastructure.
• $620,000 for capital upgrades to the Lac La Biche Golf Course, which follows the 7-year plan in the approved Golf Course Master Plan to keep the course’s infrastructure (paved paths, building a maintenance shop, etc.) in good condition.
• $1.2 million for Railway Crossing Signals (the Plamondon-Caslan Connector and 105 Avenue in Lac La Biche), partially funded by federal grant dollars.
• $991,163 for Maccagno Boat Launch Culvert and Kiniuso (Missawawi) Bridge.

 

This year, $7,305,704 will be set aside in reserves. By the end of 2023, the County will have $39,804,409 in accumulated reserves, allowing the municipality to replace and build new infrastructure as needed.

 

To gather public feedback on the budget, the County hosted two in-person open houses: one in Plamondon on November 22, and another on November 23 in Lac La Biche. New for this budget season, residents were invited to try the County’s new online engagement platform, “A Balancing Act.” This online simulation allowed residents to create their own budget version and weigh in on the same questions as Council. Any feedback gathered before November 25 was shared for Council’s consideration.

 

“It has been just over a year since Lac La Biche County’s new Council was sworn in, and I am proud of the strides that both the 2022 and 2023 budgets have made in getting us investment-ready,” says Mayor Paul Reutov. “From the big investments we are making in the Aquatics Centre, McArthur Park, and Main Street Lac La Biche to our much larger ambition to create a development corridor throughout Lac La Biche and Plamondon, we are showing that our community is ready for investment. Our Economic Development Advisory Committee is actively seeking and engaging with industry to attract businesses and investment to our municipality. Council and I look forward to seeing our new direction for the community realized.”

 

A full budget summary will be posted on the County’s website in the coming weeks. Council will set municipal tax rates in spring 2023 after property assessments are available.