It looks like the town and county, after years of debate, are finally within sight of coming to a recreation agreement.
As you read in the Leader two weeks ago Municipal Affairs minister Danielle Larivee, in correspondence, basically instructed both municipalities to get their act together and get a recreation agreement within the next six months.
If not, Larivee said she is ready to impose one.
The question is whether this is a good or bad thing and I suppose that all depends what side of the fence you sit on.
The stances of the two have changed very little over the years.
From town’s perspective, the county hasn’t been contributing what they consider to be an equitable amount to the area’s major recreation facilities, most notably the Agrena and the defunct, but soon to be reborn, aquatic centre.
According to the town, in some cases more than half of the users are county residents, but those numbers are not reflected in the amount the county contributes. For example last year the county contributed $56,724 for the Agrena’s operating expenses, which equates to about 14 per cent. The town believes that number should be at least close to 50 per cent.
The county, on the other hand, believes they are contributing sufficiently towards the area’s town-run recreational facilities and programs. Perhaps not what the town thinks is fair, but what they can afford.
In the close to two years that I have worked in Barrhead, both sides have been firmly entrenched, with no movement on either side, but it looks like that will have to change.
Like it or not, the county will have to find a way to come up with cash monies for recreation, at least with respect to the amount they give to the town.
Larivee and the government are on record saying that towns and counties have to co-operate when sharing the cost of regional services. It is clear the county will have to increase significantly the amount they contribute towards the upkeep of the area’s recreation facilities. Obviously the town won’t agree to 14 per cent, but how much off the 50 per cent number are they willing accept?
After all they don’t have a lot to lose. If they don’t like the number the county offers, the minister has said she will step in and in all likelihood any settlement will be considerably more than they have been getting. As for the county, it is more of a gamble. If they don’t come up with a figure the town is happy with, Municipal Affairs might impose an agreement that is even worse, so it is probably in the county’s best interests to deal. You know what they say, the Devil you Know. Either way the next few months should prove interesting.
