Well done, Abby Council
This space might normally be used to disagree with the way a governmental entity handles a situation but this week, we’re here to applaud the way the Abbotsford City Council handled getting the Red Arrow Park concession stand project underway.
Traditionally, a project like this undergoes a simple vetting process. Is it needed? If yes, then proceed. If no, then the proposal dies. Is there money for it? If yes, then proceed. If not, then the proposal dies. In this case, there wasn’t necessarily money readily available in the parks and recreation budget to build a new structure but with a little cost cutting and some creative funding ideas, the project is on track to be completed by next spring.
The original bid for a unique building came back at $542,000 which was almost $200,000 over budget. That might have been enough to end the proposal right then and there. The council voted down the bid and asked City Administrator Josh Soyk and Public Works Director Craig Stuttgen to find a way to make the building cheaper. Soyk and Stuttgen came back with a proposal not even a month later that was within the original estimate of $350,000.
Even at that price, some council members had their doubts about the need for the building. With the Abbotsford Merchants returning next year and the amount of work that community members that have no affiliation with the city owning the ball park have put in, it made the decision much more clear.
After deciding that the building was at an acceptable price, the council worked on where the funding for the project would come from. In a meeting in June, Stuttgen said the money was there, it was just a matter of taking from the spots where it made sense. Half of the money for the project was taken out of the TIF funds, a fund that is making the city $502,000 annually in tax revenue, and the Covid relief fund which had $232,000 waiting to be spent on whatever the city deemed fit.
In theory, where they took the money from won’t play a big role in the final outcome as the city hopes to get donations for the project that would also come with advertising abilities for local companies.
A few weeks ago, we wrote about the police department asking for donations to keep offi cers on until 2024. We didn’t have a problem with the donations aspect of that situation and we don’t disagree with the asking of donations here either. Our gripe in that case was with the uncertainty that would come from the recurring expense coming out of money that is set to expire in 2024. But for a one-time building expense, we feel this approach is much more practical.
The council ensured that any money taken from the TIF funds or Covid relief fund would not need to be used in other places in the event that no donations would come. A donation of $90,000 kicked off the exploration of a new concession stand earlier in 2022 and it is clear that the community and council were motivated to get this project started. The TIF improvements have given kids and adults things to do and places to hang out and ultimately, might be the difference between families choosing to stay in the area or not.
The stand will add to what is already a rare spectacle: a small town with a large baseball following. It is a spectacle that seems to be heading nowhere but up.
The Tribune-Phonograph editorial board consists of publisher Kris O’Leary, editor Neal Hogden and reporter Nathaniel Underwood.
