BARRHEAD - STARS Air Ambulance will not receive a contribution from the Town of Barrhead in 2023, but there is a possibility the municipality will contribute in 2024.
At their July 11 meeting, councillors opted to table discussion on any donation to STARS until the 2024 budget deliberations.
STARS is a non-profit society, founded in Calgary in 1985, that provides air ambulance services to critically-ill patients in Alberta, as well as northeastern B.C., Saskatchewan and Manitoba. This year marks its 38th year of operation.
In mid-June, STARS municipal relations liaison Glenda Farnden asked town councillors to consider donating a $7,500 annually with a three-year commitment.
She noted that STARS have approached more and more urban municipalities to create regional alliances between rural and urban municipalities.
CAO Ed LeBlanc said during their 2023 budget deliberations, council approved $19,300 for grants to organizations, of which $7,500 was earmarked for miscellaneous grants coming from requests outside of already set line items.
Since then, he noted council approved (two unbudgeted) donations of $2,000 to the Barrhead and Community Indigenous Event Committee event and the other to the Fort Assiniboine Bicentennial Committee for its recent 200th celebrations.
However, LeBlanc noted that the donations were mostly offset by unbudgeted rental revenue of $3,654, leaving roughly $7,150 in the miscellaneous fund.
He added if council agreed to grant STARS’ request for the 2023 year, it would wipe out the miscellaneous community grant fund.
Coun. Rod Klumph asked what that broke down per capita, saying he thought STARS asked for $2 per capita.
LeBlanc replied it worked out to $1.66.
At the June 13 meeting, Farnden said most urban municipalities (i.e., towns and cities) contribute $2 per capita annually, noting that some contribute as much as $8 per capita. In contrast, the contribution can be as high as $95 per capita for rural municipalities.
Last spring, the County of Barrhead increased its contribution from its usual $1 per capital to a flat rate of $7,500 at the request of STARS, while Woodlands County contributes at a $3 per capita rate.
"STARS provides an important service that I might have had to use myself. Something could have happened as I was walking down the highway," Klumph said, referring to a recent multi-day walking trip from Edmonton to Fort Assiniboine.
He added that although he wasn't against granting the request per se, but said he would be reluctant to wipe out the miscellaneous fund.
Coun. Ty Assaf agreed, noting that the donation would not mean much to STARS in the scheme of things.
"I'm not going to deny the importance of STARS, but giving them the donation would leave us nothing for associations and community groups in our town that need that money," he said.
Assaf added that STARS also has a strong fundraising mechanism, referring to the STARS calendar and lottery, whereas small local organizations' capacity to raise money is often limited.
"I agree," Klumph interjected. "If an unexpected opportunity comes up for an organization and they come knocking at our door, I would hate to have nothing to offer them."
LeBlanc interrupted, noting that the Aug. 25 council agenda will include a presentation from the Barrhead Agricultural Society for an undisclosed funding request.
Coun. Anthony Oswald, council's ag society representative, believed the request was only to confirm that they would receive their usual annual grant.
LeBlanc replied that he believed administration staff removed the line item during the 2023 budget deliberations as the contribution was for costs associated with Wildrose Rodeo Association finals, which are no longer hosted in the community.
Coun. Dave Sawatzky also suggested that money would make more of an impact locally.
"And it's not like the residents of our community don't contribute to STARS," he said, noting that the provincial taxes, in part, go towards funding the service. "So it is not like we are trying to get something for nothing. And I agree, they are a fundraising money machine, just like the children's hospital, and it is not like they will not come to Barrhead if needed."
Coun. Don Smith concurred with Sawatzky, adding STARS by asking municipal governments were effectively double-dipping.
"(STARS) gets much of its money from the provincial government. That is where we get a lot of our money. So now they are asking us to give them the money the province just gave us and give it to them," he said, suggesting they add the request to their 2024 budget deliberation cycle for consideration. "It might be more palatable then."
In the Barrhead region from 2018 to the end of May 2022, STARS has responded to 61 missions, 46 of which have originated from the Barrhead Healthcare Centre as critical inter-facility transfers, 10 have been from Barrhead-area scene calls, while five have been from the Lac La Nonne or Neerlandia area.
However, if one expands the geographical area to include Woodlands County, Westlock County, and Lac Ste. Anne County over the same period, STARS has flown 455 missions.
Barry Kerton, TownandCountryToday.com
