Parks Maintenance Reductions On Council Agenda
Monday, May 7, 2012 @ 3:59 AM
Prince George, B.C. – The 2012 budget for the City of Prince George chopped $125,000 from the parks budget, that’s the equivalent of two full time positions.
With that money trimmed from the budget, the service levels will have to change.
This evening, Prince George City Council will be asked to adopt one of three options for parks and boulevard maintenance. The previous service levels would see high priority parks (high to medium levels of public visibility) serviced every 5 days, medium priority areas (neighbourhood parks) every 12 to 14 days, and low priority areas every 30 – 40 days.
Depending on the option Council adopts, high priority areas could see their service level reduce from every 5 days to 10 or 15 days. Medium priority would change from 12-14 days to possibly 20-23 or 30-35 days and low priority areas only as required or when time permits.
There is one public hearing on the agenda for this evening. It is a request for a development variance. The application involves the development of a building on Vancouver Street which would have medical offices on the main floor, and two apartments on the second floor. The developer is asking the City to waive the requirement for underground electrical service and concrete sidewalk installation on Vancouver Street.
The Gateway Business Improvement Association will present its financial statement from 2011 and it’s budget for 2012.
Comments
Potholes, ugly parks hey way to go city hall you are winners.
I agree seamutt, lets make PG even worse than it already is.
With this $125,000 cut, the Mayor could cut another $70,000 by chopping her assistant she just hired. 2 councillors jobs could be cut as well.
http://www.princegeorge.ca/cityhall/mayorcouncil/councilagendasminutes/agendas/2012/2012_05_07/documents/Rpt_Parks_priorities.pdf
That links to the staff report to Council.
Under Financial Considerations it sates: Service levels must be adjusted to reflect the available budget.
So our City Fathers and Mother decide how to operate this Cityâs service levels by cutting the budget and then determining what they can buy for the remaining money after the fact.
I think I am seeing why we have potholes and roads that are falling apart. We set a budget and then figure out what we could afford for that instead of creating a standard and determining how much it costs to maintain that standard.
I wonder how many realize that is assbackwards.
Most places determine what a standard is then budget for it. If they cannot afford it, then one gets rid of the asset. Want 20 sports fields? How much to build and how much to operate? Canât afford 20? Build 16. Easy. Got 20 and cannot afford to operate them. Shut down 4 and operate the 16 remaining.
For instance, I assume that turf has to be cut to certain max level for proper soccer playing field. Definitely the lawn bowling green has to be maintained to a fairly strict standard. Going from 5 to 10 day care regime is likely unacceptable.
Budgets and any decisions of how much to fund certain things have to go hand in hand with standards of maintenance at the time of cuts or increases not some months afterwards. What kind of a business is this City running?
So, Canada Winter Games 2015. Why on earth did people at City Hall ever apply to hold them here without considering the fall out?
So, we have potholes that are not being repaired and we have parks and playing fields that are not being properly maintained as an indirect effect of spending money on some games.
Why on earth did we lock up $60million worth of borrowing capacity to help out Terasen? Why on earth did we lock that so called âlegacyâ that we will eventually gain so that we supposedly cannot access it for another 10 or so years?
One blunder after another. Nothing surprises anymore, does it?
Happy12 wrote: “2 councillors jobs could be cut as well.”
Yes, that is possible. However, secion 118 of the Community Charter requires a City with a population of 50,000+ to have a Council of 9, with one Mayor and 8 Councillors.
Delta, for instance, has 6+1 even though it is larger than 50,000.
Council can make a bylaw which is different than the requirements of the province. However, to do so, they have to go to a vote by the electorate. If they do that, it would not take effect till the next election. For them to do that, it would have to be done prior to the next election, otherwise we would have another year of 8 councillors if it gets approved.
Or, the people doing the work could start putting in a full day? Sure your shovel gets lonely and needs the odd cuddle but it will live.
Why not contract this work out? That would save the taxpayers a lot of cash and the work would get done in a timely manner.
“Why not contract this work out?”
Does the word “union” come to mind? … LOL
The credibility gap of the City Administration/Council and its citizens is widening by the day.
“credibility gap”…..like calling the Grand Canyon a ditch.
Welcome to the ghetto of BC.
Foul air.
Third world roads and getting worse by the day.
Unkept parks.
Curbsides littered with garbage.
High taxes.
A city council who make the “Gang that couldn’t shoot straight” look like geniuses.
Facepalm! People are going to start taking weekend trips to the pretty little gem called Quesnel.
It will be OK if the reduce the service cycle. We will be able to see where we have grass ans where we have pretty yellow flowers.What anice image our City will have.
Seems they are getting even for the results of the AAP
“Does the word “union” come to mind? … LOL”
Once their current contract expires let’s not renew it.
This about priorities. It is now obvious that taking care of our parks and keeping the city clean isn’t a priority for this group.
First she gases the environmental staff, along with those working on community policing and those who were looking after some of the many social problems we have in the city.
Then she tries to pull the plug on the effort to clean our airshed. Now it is service reductions to maintain our parks and blvds. What’s next – no snow removal?
Council has made it clear – they have decided that it is not worth investing our taxes to keep the place looking good.
Our new mayor is doing a great job turning back the clock and bringing back the 70’s when we were viewed then, as we are again, as a dirty industrial city with bad air quality and a high crime rate.
If you are worried about the pretty yellow flowers ther is a solution..Bears like them
Seems some people just can’t be satisfied. Unhappy the taxes are high, and when they cut staffing levels, you complain about lost services. You can’t have your cake and eat it too.
Contrary to popular opinion, the taxes really aren’t that high here. They may seem high in proportion to the value of your properties, but it’s pretty reasonable.
You had better get used to dwindling levels of service, because if the future outlook is even remotely accurate, when our core infrastructure really starts to crumble, and I’m talking about water and sewer now, we’re going have to cast even more “optional” services, just so we can make living in this city viable. Let all the parks return to natural areas for all of me. If people want manicured fields bad enough, they’ll find a way to make it happen.
So in the meantime Sine Nomine lets carry on with Pig Gorge as it is and will be with the current mayor and councilors.
faxman, do I recognize you from Green’s campaign team?
“faxman, do I recognize you from Green’s campaign team?”
I don’t know, do you?
It occurs to me that the Council of the day is tripping over Loonies to pick up dimes. How much cash are they going to actually save by changing mowing intervals? It has been said that the altered snow removal which was inacted by our last council is the reason we have now have the problems with our roads.If I recall the City used to have a policy of a three day turn around when it came to this service, what is it now? Could it be, that the real problem is, all that snow and Ice being left on the roads for a longer period of time? If so, what have we actually saved.
Sure thing! Ill-maintained parks, crappy roads,fired Workers out of work and on the dole, unable to pay their mortgages,and Winter Olympics here in 2015! Go figure.
Like the state of the roads is the City Employees fault!? The city workers work just as hard as your average sawmill worker so don’t even go there or maybe we should fire all of them too. In fact the City of P.G workers and employees are in fact working HARDER than most as they are asked to do more with less! Its not a “Union” issue it’s a Mayor and upper management MISMANAGEMENT issue for years and now everyone wants someone to blame so they blame the guy whos cheque comes from the city…..City workers pay taxes too and hate the roads Just as much as anyone else and want to see a better City. Sadly folks have elected a Mayor who ran for herself and her cronies on a flashy campaign and idiots who “wanted a change” bought it,now get ready for some rough rough years as Shari Green doesn’t give a Dam about this City!!
Me? I would like to see on our National News eventually about some fine upstanding taxpaying residents getting arrested for getting together and mowing neglected lawns in their neglected neighbourhood park. Ms. Green can lay the complaint. Prince George can’t be too famous, can it?
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