The Village of Clyde is trending towards non-viability, according a report released last week by the Viability Review Team.
Mayor Doug Nyal, however, said he doesn’t think the report paints the full picture and encourages all residents to carefully consider what might come next.
“The report’s out, and everybody should read it,” he said.
“They should read it, understand what it’s saying, and if you have opinions about it then you’ve got to make yourself heard.”
The report includes information gathered since the viability review process began in spring 2012 when Clyde resident Ann Wegernoski circulated a petition asking the province to look into the possible dissolution of the village.
This move prompted the creation of the Viability Review Team, which held a public meeting in October 2014 where it gathered information to compile this most recent report.
The conclusion in the report, that the village is trending toward non-viability, is based on several factors, including the village’s difficulty in attracting staff and councillors, difficulty in attracting growth and development, not running utilities in full-cost recovery and a high amount of outstanding property taxes.
There are two specific factors to which the report refers that Nyal says are inaccurate or simply premature.
First, the report indicates, “the village does not know the overall conditions of the village’s infrastructure, what infrastructure upgrades and replacements are required, or how future infrastructure projects could be funded.”
Nyal disagrees with that statement, noting the council and administration are well aware of what infrastructure issues exist within the village and have been upgrading and replacing as required, noting at present there is a $130,000 upgrade taking place in the village’s water distribution system.
“We are aware of what we’re doing and we have a handle on our infrastructure,” he said.
“We’re working on the upgrades as it’s fiscally responsible.”
As for how those upgrades are funded and will continue to be funded, he acknowledged the pending cuts to provincial grants including the Municipal Sustainability Initiative will be challenging, but by no means insurmountable.
“The village has been here without funding from the province before, and I suspect we’ll be here again without funding from the province and we’re going to get through it and survive,” said Nyal.
The second factor to which the report refers is the village’s financial situation for the 2015 budget.
“In 2015, the village proposes to subsidize operating expenses from reserves to maintain current tax rates,” the report says.
“This practice could result in the eventual depletion of the village’s financial reserves.”
Nyal said this statement is premature considering council has yet to approve a 2015 operating budget, and furthermore it’s likely inaccurate as there’s little appetite on council for deficit spending.
“I would be very much surprised if you would get any favour from the councillors sitting around that table that they’re willing to run a deficit budget,” he said.
“I would be totally shocked if they would approve a deficit budget.”
He added the village is in good financial shape and has no outstanding debt.
“Financially, we’re in a lot better shape than just about any other municipality in the province,” he said.
“We carry no debt and there’s not a lot that can sit back and say that, whether with a population of 500 or 5,000 or 50,000.”
As for the next steps, Nyal said the review team has a conference call scheduled for this week, and there will soon be another sit-down meeting scheduled where the team will make a recommendation to the village council.
The report says the finding of a trend toward non-viability does not necessarily mean the village will dissolve, but means the review team will develop a “Viability Plan” for the village.
“The plan will include actions that could be taken by the council to ensure the ongoing viability of the village and the impacts on the Village of Clyde and Westlock County should dissolution occur,” read the report, adding residents will be informed of updates and future stakeholder engagement.
Westlock County reeve Bud Massey said from the county’s perspective, there’s very little to say at this point until the process runs its course.
“I believe that the viability report is part of the democratic process, and the decision should be made by the residents of Clyde,” Massey said.
“I wouldn’t want to influence them in any way.”
