10-Year Capital Plan ($443M) - Projects proposed for removal
Our 10-year capital plan has us looking straight at a $300M+ capital deficit. We clearly cannot fund all the projects on this list without significant impacts to taxation and debt, so Council is proposing that we remove a number of projects that we feel will not reach the top of the priority list within ten years.
Projects that are not currently being considered for removal as far as I know include: Traffic Calming ($4.5M), Safe Journeys to School ($1.2M), Fowler Way ($32.3M), Ray Gibbon Improvements ($36.4M), Fire Station 4 ($20.3M), a 6th ice surface at Servus ($21.4M), Founders Walk ($3M), Heritage Park phases & interpretive centre/museum ($19.5M), an 8-lane pool at Servus (21.5M), contaminated sites remediation ($150,000).
Please let me know if you have a particular opinion about any of the projects we’re considering. Also, please know that projects will also be added to service our needs.
These are the projects ($155M) that various councillors have proposed to remove from the plan:
Tennis Park ($1.6M): A new tennis court facility.
Museum expansion ($2.8M): This is for an expansion within St. Albert Place. With the Heritage Park project calling for museum space, this project would be a duplication of sorts.
Art Gallery expansion ($410,000): I look forward to checking out the newly expanded St. Albert Art Gallery space this month, so I can’t see a second renovation taking priority over other cultural projects in the next ten years.
Creative Hub ($11.8M) + Cultural Buildings ($4.8M): Like St. Albert Place and VASA, this would be a multi-tenant space with different arts-based opportunities.
Civic Square ($204,000): This is to turn the big downtown parking lot into a community space, kind of like Sir Winston Churchill Square in Edmonton. Although I don’t think the parking situation is ready for this project today, it might be within the decade.
Perron Street Improvements ($6M): This is to make Perron more walkable/bikeable and conducive to restaurant patios, etc.
Grandin Road Improvements ($2.3M): This is to make a small section of Grandin Rd more bikeable/walkable.
St. Anne Street Pedestrian Improvements ($859,000): This is to make St. Anne more walkable/bikeable.
St. Thomas St. Median Improvements ($3M): This is to remove the median and make the street more pedestrian-friendly.
Tache Street Green Corridor ($2.7M): This will connect Grenier Park to Millennium Park to the river as a pedestrian access.
Affordable & Accessible Housing Options ($100,000): This is a proposed reserve that we would add to every year to save for capital investment in affordable housing.
Solar Photovoltaics (PV) Program ($2M): This is to put solar panels on a couple more of our buildings, with a break-even for our investment in about 8 years.
Servus Place Fitness Expansion: ($6M): It’s full right now, but there are other options to expand services if we move forward with a new rec facility in the next decade.
Urban Forest Canopy ($500,000): For tree planting, improving conditions, and research/making a plan for future forest growth.
Oakmont Trail Phase 2 ($1.7M): To expand the Red Willow Trail system.
Baseball Park ($3.7M): To build a second one, like the ones next to the waterpark. As far as I know, we wouldn’t be partnering with SAMBA for this and there is no land set aside.
Outdoor Artificial Ice Arena Surface at Servus ($4.9M): This is a fancy version of the surface that we approved for 2019. My guess is that the removal of this project will be supported unanimously.
Recreation Facility ($1.5M): This is for planning something, but we don’t know what. We voted it off the plan last year, so it seems to be a miscommunication that kept it on the list.
Servus Place Aquatic Expansion ($14.3M): Who wants two lanes and a teach pool added to Servus Place? No one, as far I can tell!
Flag Poles ($171,000): This is to put flag poles at every civic building, like the business centre downtown (the old CIBC).
Public Parking Structure ($20,4M): This is for a giant cement parkade in the middle of downtown.
DARP Project Prioritization ($100,000): This is to study our downtown plan and make recommendations.
Field House Indoor Sports field ($20M): This is to build a standalone feildhouse, like what we have at Servus. I don’t think we’d move forward on this as a standalone.
Indoor Aquatic Facility ($38.1M): This is for a new facility like Fountain Park. Although a larger facility that also includes ice, fitness, field houses is my preference, I would consider supporting this project if the location and opportunities were appropriate.
Eldorado Park Planning ($51,000): This project is outside of our standards for neighbourhood planning.
Power for North side of Children’s Bridge ($100,000): This is to bring power to the north side of the bridge, so we wouldn’t have to bring in generators for events like the Children’s Festival.
Facility Water and Energy Audits ($50,500): This is to study the impacts of our energy and water upgrades to see how well they worked and make recommendations for future projects. I will fight to keep this on the books!
It’s not official yet, and this list can easily change, but we’ll likely discuss these at our next GPFC meeting, with a final decision from Council in February.
