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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2015-10-22, Page 7THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2015. PAGE 7. VanCamp frustrated by centre funding cuts Members of the Belgrave and District Community Centre Board feels the board is being treated unfairly by Morris-Turnberry Council after council decided to cut funding to the board by 75 per cent. After writing a letter to Morris- Turnberry Council and explaining the board’s position, council sent a response stating that the board, which has a surplus of more than $130,000 right now, wasn’t a place council felt it should be putting money. The board’s frustration is twofold. Primarily, the decision wasn’t discussed with the board or the public. Secondarily, the letter that was sent to the board made it sound like it is being punished for being fiscally responsible. Over the past six years, Morris- Turnberry has been giving $20,000 to the board annually, an amount that was equal to North Huron’s contribution when the board was formed in 2009 and the centre was leased from North Huron. The mirroring ended there as North Huron’s contribution has increased with inflation and rising insurance costs at the centre. In 2014, North Huron gave the board $47,000, more than $10,000 of which came back to North Huron to pay for the lease of the centre. Morris-Turnberry’s contribution has stayed at that $20,000 until this year, when council decided to give the board $5,000. Board President Jonathan VanCamp said that council’s response points to limited usage as one reason for the reduced funding and the $139,469 surplus for the end of 2014 as a second cause, however, he said that the surplus doesn’t tell the whole story. “In 2014, we got $47,616 from North Huron and $20,000 from Morris-Turnberry,” he said. “We raised the balance of the funds needed for that year, which brought us to $151,000 in revenue.” VanCamp explained the board spent $132,000 in 2014 including necessary fire upgrades to sprinklers and doors for $60,000, a new generator for $33,000, new tables and chairs for $9,000, gas water heaters to replace electric models for $7,500 and new appliances.” “It’s not like [board members are deciding against] putting money back in the building,” he said. “We raise money through baseball functions and facility rentals and use everything we can to make the centre better.” VanCamp said the board members have a simple philosophy when it comes to capital projects: have the money before the project begins. “We’ve taken the position of raising the money first then doing the project,” he said. “The board does not run a deficit. It has no debt, no line of credit, no loans with the banks and no projects that it can’t finance.” VanCamp said the funds that are in reserve are partly earmarked for capital funds, since some of North Huron’s contributions are for capital spending only. He also said that, due to accessibility standards, the board would be spending between $60,000 and $80,000 to install a bathroom on the ice level in the community centre and it is saving for that. “They are penalizing us for managing our money, using grants and saving money responsibly,” he said. “Yes, the board has a reserve, but so do townships. Having a reserve, and money for emergencies, isn’t a bad thing.” VanCamp said the decision, which was made without input from the board, upset board members greatly because the board is supposed to be a partnership among North Huron, Morris-Turnberry and the ratepayers of both municipalities in Belgrave. He also said 2013 was a good year and 2014 was better with the licencing of the facility, but that doesn’t mean the site will always be able to annually bring in tens of thousands of dollars. “The board could see revenue fluctuate,” he said. “Since the centre has natural ice, there is no guarantee of how long the ice is there or how many rentals we will get. There is no guarantee that the number of ball teams will stay the same, as a matter of fact, there are less now. There is no guarantee there will be six to eight buck and does or one to three weddings.” VanCamp said there is no guarantee any event or number of events that helped the centre, including perennial favourites like the Belgrave Turkey Supper which annually raises $10,000 for the centre, will continue on year after year so the board felt it was being responsible saving money. Mayor Paul Gowing, in an interview with The Citizen earlier this week, said he understood the board’s frustration, but said the decision did not reflect any kind of negative remark on the group. “The reduction of the grant is in no way meant to penalize the board,” he said. “Morris-Turnberry will be there to support them in any way that is necessary. If there is a capital project or major expense on the horizon, the municipality will be there.” Gowing said council’s job is to set priorities, and the whole concent of the support from the municipality was done by grant and no number was put in writing. “The idea, at the start, was to support the board and get them up and running and financially sound,” he said. “Council believes that has happened.” Gowing said council finds itself in a predicament where that $15,000 is needed badly in other areas. He said it isn’t appropriate for council to collect tax dollars that are put into a reserve with no specific purpose. “Once the funds go to the board, council has no say as to how they are used,” he said. “We weren’t told of any expenditures and we had to set a priority.” VanCamp said that, in previous years, he had been invited to council meetings to discuss upcoming costs for the board to make sure the funding was accounted for. He wasn’t invited this year, however, before the decision was made to cut funding and wasn’t able to tell council members about the expected expenses for the accessible washroom. Gowing said with the amount of money in reserve, it would take a substantial cost to trigger funds being necessary from council’s point of view. He also said that, from a usage standpoint, council had made a decision to match funds to the centres being used. “The municipality pays into five community centres and council decided to provide funding that would be allotted to each centre by usage,” he said. “The $5,000 is very close to the figure that should be granted that way.” Morris-Turnberry staff provided VanCamp with the usage numbers for the centre, which had Morris- Turnberry residents from 173 households going to Blyth’s community centre and only 50 going to Belgrave. He said the numbers didn’t make sense to him. Gowing said that the funding was PUBLIC NOTICE 2016 Municipality of Central Huron Budget The Council of the Municipality of Central Huron is commencing the 2016 Budget Deliberations. The first Budget meeting to discuss the Capital Budget / Multi-Year Capital Plans scheduled for: Tuesday, October 27, 2015 at 5:00 p.m. Council Chamber, 23 Albert, Clinton, Ontario Please check the municipal website for further details and postings as they become available.www.centralhuron.com Brenda MacIsaac, Clerk Municipality of Central Huron Sheepskin Rugs Downtown Blyth 519-523-4740 Bainton’s Old Mill NEWS FROM BELGRAVE ‘Baseball Sunday’ coming Thanksgiving and a 55th anniversary were held Sunday, Oct. 11 at the home of Ross and Wilma Higgins. Special guests celebrating their grandparents anniversary were Laura Higgins, Carleton University, Ottawa; Nicholas Barger, Lambton College, Sarnia and Ashley Higgins, Fanshawe College, London. Also attending were Bruce Higgins and Shelby and Donna, John and Jason Barger. Sheila and John Nixon greeted worshippers and handed out the service of worship at Knox United Church on Sunday, Oct. 18 – World Food Sunday. Nancy Cameron welcomed the congregation and went over the announcements. Birthday greetings were extended to Kim Walker and John Clark and “Happy Birthday” was sung. Nancy lit the Christ Candle followed by the call to worship read responsively and the opening prayer read in unison. The opening hymn, “Holy, Holy, Holy” was sung accompanied by Ann Clark at the organ and Lila Procter with her guitar. The choir anthem was “My Song to the Lord”. After the singing of the children’s hymn, “All Creatures of Our God and King”, the children gathered in the front pew for children’s time. Nancy showed the children different foods which were all Canadian made. We are fortunate to have an abundance of food. After the Lord’s Prayer the children adjourned to Sunday school with a treat. We listened to the word of God as Ron Taylor read the scripture lessons from Exodus 16: 1-4, 13-17 and Psalm 104 (part one) was read responsively and Luke 22: 17-20 and Matthew 14: 13-21. Nancy reflected on the Sunday being “World Food Sunday”. We don’t know what hunger is like. We Canadians waste food and our portions are much larger than in poor countries. By sharing with others we can reduce our food waste and we can support our Food Grains Bank. Nancy told how one little boy had five loaves of bread and two fish and Jesus shared the food with 5,000 people. Jesus prayed and thanked God for the food. There was plenty of bread and fish for everyone. The church exists to serve Jesus Christ and if it does it will soon feed the needy. God calls us to be generous and share. We are hungry for acceptance and love. With God all things are possible. After the singing of “In the Bulb There is a Flower” accompanied by Ann and Lila. Nancy Jardin reported on “Minute for Missions”. Ken Procter and Larry Harper took up the offering which was dedicated. The closing hymn, “All Things Bright and Beautiful” and the singing of “Go Now in Peace” concluded the morning worship service. On Sunday, Oct. 25 at Knox United Church the theme is Messy Church. It will also be “Baseball Sunday” – wear your favourite sports team jersey and do not forget to bring your ball gloves and bats to church. By Linda Campbell Call 357-2188 PEOPLE AROUND BELGRAVE By Denny Scott The Citizen Continued on page 9