Powers meant to build houses should be ‘revoked’

Heather Wright/The Independent

A St. Clair Township councillor is calling out her mayor saying he abused the Strong Mayor powers, creating a budget on his own.

Councillor Holly Foster made the comments to The Independent after the township council went over the $81,620,340 operating and capital budget Jan. 15.

It is the first year municipal budgets across Lambton are being created under new powers given by the province to mayors to advance provincial priorities, particularly home building.

Under the rules, mayors have control of the budget process and can present a document to council. While the Strong Mayor rules lay out timelines, it doesn’t say how mayors create budgets.

In most Lambton municipalities, mayors have either directed administration with a maximum tax increase goal to bring to council or set up a finance committee to review the document with the mayor.

In St. Clair Township in the past, Clerk Jeff Baranek says the top administrators would work with department heads to create a budget, paring it down before presenting it to council.

This year, the department heads submitted their budgets, the treasurer “collated them into a draft that he then provided to the mayor.” Baranek says Jeff Agar consulted with the treasurer, but had the final say.

Agar told council the staff budget would have increase municipal taxes by 13.74 per cent. His budget placed the municipal tax increase at 4.42 per cent. With the school board and Lambton County taxes combined with the municipal levy, Agar said the average residential tax bill would rise 2.58 per cent or about $76.74 for the average homeowner. He said a lower tax rate is important in these economically difficult time.

“A lot of our residents are feeling the pinch a little more this year. Five year mortgages will be coming due this year, so they definitely do not need a large raise in taxes.”

“I think we have all seen the amount of families having to use the food banks a little more this year,” Agar told council.

“I saw Operation Christmas Tree had a large list this year, and that is why I personally am working as hard as I can to bring more industry, business, to attract more jobs and bring in more revenue, to keep our taxes nearly around inflation.”

Agar gave brief remarks about the $81 million budget, stressing it was a fiscally sound plan. Staff members didn’t have a chance to speak about their projects with the mayor while he created the budget nor during the budget meeting.

One item which concerned Councillor Foster was the renovations at the Moore Sports Complex Pool.

Just days before the budget meeting, staff told council an inspection uncovered the infrastructure in the change room was in critical condition and needs to be replaced. Director of Community Services, Kendall Lindsay, suggested council find another $1.5 million to complete both the work around the pool which was already in the works and the change rooms at the same time. He anticipated the pool will have to be shut down for six to nine months to complete the work and didn’t want to have to close it for two years.

The mayor’s proposed budget didn’t include the extra cash.

Councillor Foster presented motion after motion to delay 18 different projects in Community Services to come up with the cash to complete the project in one year. Foster told council she had spoken with Lindsay who was on-board with the plan.

“It’s going to cost us about double if we don’t, (move forward) because then we’re going to have to turn around and shut it (the pool) down again to fix the pipes.”

But council, including Agar, turned down the motions.

Some seemed confused by Foster’s proposals.

“How come I had to wait to a budget meeting find out this problem,” asked Councillor Pat Brown. “In our role as counselors, are we to be working for staff projects now? Where’s this information coming from and why is it only brought forth that budget? It’s a little confusing to me that we want to re jerk the whole (budget) plan that was presented to us.”

Foster said for the past three years, she has spent time with department heads before budget to really understand what they were doing. She found that this year staff developed the budget but didn’t have any input as the mayor created the budget. So, she proposed the changes after talking with staff about solutions.

While her plan to find cash to fix the Moore pool didn’t pass, several others to add money into the budget succeed, including returning money into roads projects and replacing a leaking roof at Branton-Cundick Park.

That increased the municipal tax rate to 7.7 per cent which, with the county and school board taxes would increase the total average residential tax bill by $116.59.

That could still be changed by Agar under the Strong Mayor powers. After the budget is passed, Agar has 10 days to veto the changes made. Council then can reverse the mayor’s veto with a two-thirds majority.

Foster maintains the provincial Strong Mayor’s legislation was supposed to drive home building.

“Our hands were tied,” she tells The Independent. “The mayor created the budget on his own…I think it is an abuse of Strong Mayor powers. It’s wrong in my opinion.”

Foster wants the Strong Mayor legislation revoked.

She’s also concerned there were a number of instances where the mayor’s budget removed lines which would have put cash away for future spending. And she voiced concern about a plan which pays for fire trucks with reserves from other departments to be paid back at a later date.

Foster says the plan to replace fire vehicles is based on a 20-year life cycle. Fire Chief Richard Boyes says insurance premiums for residents are lower because the trucks are replaced at that time. However, they could be replaced every 25 years.

“If our staff had explained to council that the purchases could’ve been delayed and that other options were available, I’m sure different decisions would’ve been made.

“From the information that I have received, I feel we are making critical mistakes moving forward if we don’t change our financial position,” says Foster.

Council plans to look at the issue when the budget returns to council Feb. 2.