The Town of Battleford has been allocated $264,208 from the Safe Restart Canada Plan. (File Photo/battlefordsNOW Staff)

By Josh Ryan

Battleford restart funds

Battleford to receive $264,000 from restart plan

Sep 11, 2020 | 3:10 PM

The Town of Battleford joins municipalities across the province in having to make decisions in the coming weeks on how to utilize government funding from the Safe Restart Canada Plan.

The town was allocated $264,208, the largest in its tier of municipalities. The plan, introduced back in July, provided money for each province to use for lost municipal revenue, where funds are allocated on a per capita basis. Based on the 2016 census, the town of Battleford had a population of 4,429 that year. North Battleford’s allocation was just short of $854,000, with Saskatoon receiving the largest amount at more than $4.3 million.

Mayor Ames Leslie was thrilled to see some support for both sides of government.

“Definitely grateful any time the government is willing to give some more money during hard times of funding and income,” he said. “We’ll definitely welcome it and put it to good use.”

Because MEEP funding has helped support infrastructure, Leslie said they will be looking at possible investment in facilities to make them more safe for residents during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, there’s no concrete direction at this time.

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“Maybe an opportunity to invest more in recreation in our community,” he said. “We’ll see what council has to say.”

This funding is particularly key in managing the future losses still ahead from facilities being unable to open to full capacity, if at all. Leslie said it will depend on how long everyday occurrences take to return to normal, with losses estimated to be between $200,000-300,000. This amount may come close to offsetting that total.

“This would potentially cover off some of those losses or allow us to invest in those areas,” Leslie said.

However, balancing the books with the Safe Restart funds is only a temporary solution. Leslie said to get a clearer picture of where the community sits for the next few years depends on getting events and regular community activities underway. Without that return to normal.

“If the hockey rink doesn’t open for an entire season, that’s a lot of revenue lost to any municipality, really.”

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josh.ryan@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @JoshRyanSports