Swift Current city council saw some division when it came to applying for funding to help construct a new indoor pool in the city Monday night.
Two-thirds of council voted in favour of filing the application through the federal government's Green and Inclusive Community Buildings Grant Program. City councillors Leanne Tuntland-Wiebe and John Wall voted against submitting the application.
Tuntland-Wiebe's arguments centred around wanting more support from regional partners, how the funding from the Southwest Facility Foundation would be implemented, and how historically, they have been rejected by the grant each time they have applied.
She highlighted how the cost of this project is being placed entirely on Swift Current when between 25 and 30 per cent of current Aquatic Centre users are from the surrounding communities.
"I'd also like to put a plea in here. I'd love to see our regional partners come to the table," said Tuntland-Wiebe.
She also highlighted how the SWFF is working to help offset costs, but that the money they raise will not reduce the amount of the initial loan request.
"I tremendously appreciate the massive undertaking in raising funds that this group and Swift Current have done," said Tuntland-Wiebe. "It's my understanding that funds raised by the SWFF would be allocated over a period of 10 years. Their contribution will help greatly with easing the burden of expenses."
However, she came back around to the fact that applying for the grants is in and of itself, expensive. Each time they apply, they have to pay, and ask for more due to the rising cost of building a new facility each year.
By her estimation, the City of Swift Current would need to provide $25 million for the project even after being approved for the grant. In her eyes, to avoid taking on debt like she and others promised when they were elected, it would require a six per cent increase in property tax.
"Or it could mean a levy of roughly $135 per property for the next two or more decades," said Wiebe. "This has me especially worried for our fixed-income residents."
She went on to highlight that the City of Swift Current currently has $81 million in debt. The provincially regulated ceiling for debt in Swift Current is capped at $110 million. Thus, if the City did foot the $25 million bill for the new Aquatic Centre at this time, it would push the current municipal debt to $106 million.
That would only leave $4 million on the floor for emergencies and other projects that need funding.
"Our administration has done an excellent job reallocating funds within the budget that we approved for 2024," said Tuntland-Wiebe. "Hopefully in a few more years with interest rates forecasted to be lower, the new city council will have lowered the debt even further."
With all of her arguments laid bare, she reiterated how she could not in her own good conscience vote in favour of pursuing the Green and Inclusive Community Buildings Grant Fund.
"I would not overextend my limit personally, and I wouldn't risk it for a family business," said Tuntland-Wiebe. "So as trying to be a good steward, why would I take that chance on behalf of our taxpayers? I thank you for all the work that you do in the applications, but I have to vote my conscience tonight and I unfortunately won't be in support of it tonight."
However, the next three members of council to speak had rebuttals of their own for the arguments Tuntland-Wiebe put forward.
The first to respond was City Councillor Ryan Plewis. He thanked Tuntland-Wiebe for her viewpoints and for the clarity of her statement. He even agreed with her that the City could not build this new facility alone.
"We simply won't be able to do it without support," said Plewis. "I agree it would be nice to see the provincial government come to the table with some funding for these sorts of things."
He also agreed that it would be nice if the communities that enjoy the services of the Aquatic Centre were willing to open a dialogue.
However, he was adamant that this is a project the City needs to make happen.
"I hear from people inside the city all the time and I hear from people who live outside the city as well, that we need to do this," said Plewis. "We need to. We need to have these sorts of facilities in the city to be that vibrant community that we're looking to build."
He highlighted how both of the two previous applications for the grant seemed to be really strong contenders. He pointed to how if they get approved this time around, there will still be an astronomical bill to be paid.
"If it's left to the citizens of the City of Swift Current to do on our own, that's not enough community," said Plewis. "It just simply isn't. We're going to need that help from other municipalities."
Plewis stated that the upcoming elections will touch upon this topic in Swift Current, and how he hoped it's a topic engaged by others running in elections in Swift Current's surrounding communities.
He went on to praise the efforts of the SWFF. Their efforts stood out to him as they are on the frontlines, going into communities and businesses, asking for support in funding the new Aquatic Centre.
"I feel that we wouldn't be doing proper justice to that effort if we didn't choose to move forward with this," said Plewis. "I say that only as a personal decision, not to take anything away from anything."
He confirmed that he would be voting in favour of filing the grant application.
Next to speak was city councillor Ryan Switzer. He focused on how the Aquatic Centre is over 40 years old and has experienced a large amount of downtime.
"I thank our staff for doing the best they can with what they have," said Switzer. "But the fact of the matter is in key times when families should be together and doing family activities, there's a lot of times where they just can't due to the age of our current facility."
Over the last year, the Aquatic Centre has had delays due to repairs being made to the facility's main pumps, a seal needing to be replaced, and other issues regarding the mechanical aspects of the pool. The pumps alone cost over $42,000.
The pool has also required city council to shuffle budget to allow for a $20,000 building assessment that will help determine the remaining lifespan of the facility.
Switzer was very adamant that replacing the aging indoor pool was paramount.
"We pay a lot to our federal government, but not a lot comes back to Swift Current," said Switzer. "This is an opportunity for us to bring those dollars back and to do right by young families."
Swift Current Mayor Al Bridal confirmed that the report on the Aquatic Centre is due on Oct. 16, 2024. It's his hope that it will reveal to them a path forward to keep the antiquated facility operating for another five to ten years.
"We are concerned, staff is concerned, council is concerned, and patrons are concerned with the state of some things in our facility," said Bridal. "I hope they tell us we can do a few minor, or maybe even major corrections."
Bridal explained how those repairs and corrections will be needed even if they do win the grant funding. Building this new facility will take at least five years of work, forcing the continued operations of the Aquatic Centre as it currently stands.
"It's not a no-brainer," concluded Bridal. "We all have our decisions to make for ourselves. Councillor Tuntland-Wiebe and Councillor Wall, I appreciate your points of view but on this one, I'm going to be supporting this."
City council voted four for the grant application, with two against. Mayor Al Bridal also voted in favour, making the vote five to two in favour.