Rec centre deadline in doubt

Owen Sound’s $38 million regional recreation centre project is months behind schedule and the mayor says it’s doubtful the complex will be finished in time to meet a government deadline.

Mayor Ruth Lovell Stanners and other city officials will meet today with high-ranking provincial representatives to discuss the consequences of not “substantially” completing the project by the March 31, 2011, deadline.

“We need to have some assurance that if we’re not substantially complete by March we won’t lose our funding,” Lovell Stanners said in a telephone interview from Toronto.

The last thing the city wants is to find out after the deadline that the building is not complete enough to meet the conditions of the funding agreement and be on the hook for the entire cost.

The mayor, along with city/county Coun. Arlene Wright and city manager Jim Harrold, are meeting with cabinet ministers and hobnobbing with other municipal politicians this week at an Ontario Good Roads Association conference in Toronto.

They have a meeting scheduled today with Huron-Bruce MPP and Ontario’s Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Carol Mitchell. Her ministry administers the Building Canada program, which awarded Owen Sound two-thirds funding for the recreation centre project.

Lovell Stanners said the city delegation is looking for a clear definition of “substantially complete” and “what happens” if the criteria cannot be met by the deadline set out in the Building Canada funding agreement.

The provincial and federal governments have committed to pay $11 million apiece towards the recreation centre cost. The other $16 million is planned to be financed by Owen Sound, the Family Y, Georgian Bluffs and a fundraising campaign.

The project hit a snag late last year when soil samples revealed the earth at the Victoria Park building site could not bear the weight of the recreation complex. Soil needs to be hauled away and replaced with rocky earth. The problem increased an already over-budget cost estimate by about $1 million.

Coun. Jim McManaman, chairman of the recreation centre steering committee, said there has always been a concern with the funding agreement’s “tight” timeline, but the soil problem has delayed the construction schedule even further.

A project charter, approved by city council in August, set Nov. 30 as the date for construction to begin. Almost three months later, the project has not yet started. A tender for groundwork closes Friday.

McManaman said city officials plan to also speak with Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound MP Larry Miller about the deadline.

He said the city believes the project will meet the goals of the Building Canada program — to stimulate the local economy and create jobs — whether it is finished by March 31, 2011, or later.

“We’re still trying to define what substantially complete means. That would be the first thing. And we’ve been working very hard with our architect and construction manager to try to compress the timeline as best we can, keeping in mind we still want quality,” he said.

Councillor expenses include trip to Whistler, B.C.

City council billed Owen Sound taxpayers nearly $23,000 for expenses last year, including $3,200 for Coun. John Christie to attend a four-day conference in Whistler, B.C.

Christie, who claimed the most for council-related expenses, said his trip to the Federation of Canadian Municipalities conference was “money well spent” because he learned a lot about issues of importance to Owen Sound.

“It’s expensive and it’s very hard to measure sometimes whether something is well spent in terms of the actual dollars, but I think attending — it was my only major expense of the year and it certainly was the highlight in terms of educational expanse,” he said Friday.

Christie said he attended presentations on waste management, sewage treatment, brown-field redevelopment and affordable housing.

He said he also networked with municipal leaders and listened to talks by senior ministers and federal opposition leaders.

No other city councillors attended.

Christie billed $1,259 to stay at the Fairmont Chateau Whistler, $805 for airfare, $675 for a registration fee and $500 for per diem pay. He said he travelled to B.C. by train, but submitted a claim for the less expensive airfare.

Christie’s total bill for expenses was $177.35 over the councillor limit of $3,250.

In all, council members received $218,000 last year for salary, meeting payments and expenses.

Coun. Bill Twaddle presented a motion, which passed during budget deliberations, to reduce the councillor expenses limit for 2010 from $3,250 to $2,500.

Twaddle, who also presented motions to freeze council pay, said a $2,500 expense allowance is “reasonable.” It is enough to cover one out-of-town conference per year, he said.

“What I’m trying to do, without diminishing the role of council, is ask council to show some leadership because we’re asking for restraint and spending controls in so many areas,” he said.

The province cut $400,000 from the city’s 2010 transfer payment. Council dedicated five full days to chop down the city’s operating budget.

In the end, council accepted a budget that requires a 5.81% hike in property tax revenue to finance. Council is holding a public meeting about the budget, which has yet to be finally approved, March 1.

City/county Coun. Arlene Wright said council members should be “very careful” with their expenses.

Conference schedules should be carefully reviewed to ensure they are worthwhile, she said.

Coun. Deb Haswell, who attended a Federation of Canadian Municipalities conference in Calgary a few years ago, said she found it to be worthwhile, with plenty of useful information.

“No one does this job because of the money,” she said.

This year’s FCM conference is in Toronto.

Haswell claimed $2,143.68 in council-related expenses, including $685 for printer cartridges and $1,246 to attend conferences in Toronto. She bought tickets to Ducks Unlimited and Chamber of Commerce dinners. She also spent $2,274.46 to attend conferences for her role on the Ontario Small Urban Municipalities (OSUM) executive and AMO’s climate change task force.

Coun. David Adair claimed $3,008.24 in expenses, including $2,204 to attend an AMO conference in Ottawa. He also purchased ink cartridges, a printer and tickets to the Owen Sound cultural awards ceremony and a Chamber of Commerce meeting.

Mayor Ruth Lovell Stanners spent $670.66 to attend the AMO conference, $355.26 to attend functions on behalf of the city and $1,850 for council-related expenses.

Coun. Peter Lemon claimed $2,686.21 in expenses, including $2,121 to attend an OSUM conference in Cornwall and for mileage, event tickets and a printer cartridge.

Twaddle claimed $2,504.24 in expenses, including $2,110 to attend the AMO conference. He also paid for mileage and event tickets.

Wright billed $1,547 for expenses, including $870 to attend a municipal conference in London. She also attended a policing conference in Caledon and other meetings. The county paid her way to an AMO conference.

Coun. Jim McManaman claimed $1,253.40, including $1,138.33 to attend the AMO conference. He also bought city Christmas party tickets and an ink cartridge.

Coun. Tom Pink claimed $1,132 in expenses for event tickets, meals, business cards, pins and printer cartridges.

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By the numbers

Council salary, meeting per diem and expense payments made to Owen Sound councillors in 2009 for city work. Approved at a meeting this week.

Mayor Ruth Lovell Stanners: $30,688.50 salary, $4,700 per diem, $2,876.46 expenses.

Coun. David Adair: $11,692.08 salary, $6,275 per diem, $3,008.24 expenses.

Coun. John Christie: $11,692.08 salary, $5,650 per diem, $3,427.35 expenses.

Coun. Deb Haswell: $11,692.08 salary, $343.86 salary for police services board, $10,850 per diem, $2,143.68 expenses, $2,274.46 for AMO/OSUM expenses.

Coun. Peter Lemon: $11,692.08 salary, $6,600 per diem, $2,686.21 expenses.

Coun. Jim McManaman: $11,692.08 salary, $9,025 per diem, $1,253.40 expenses.

Coun. Tom Pink: $11,692.08 salary, $7,450 per diem, $1,132.80 expenses.

Coun. Bill Twaddle: $11,692.08 salary, $2,750.88 salary for police services board, $9,075 per diem, $2,504.24 expenses.

Coun. Arlene Wright: $11,692.08 salary, $3,094.74 salary for police services board, $5,715 per diem, $1,547.87 expenses.