(file photo/battlefordsNOW Staff)

By Angela Brown

Wish list

City, town hope to see more support in new provincial budget

Mar 16, 2023 | 4:30 PM

With the new 2023-24 provincial budget expected to be released on March 22, leadership in the Battlefords would like to see more commitment from the province to help local municipalities.

Town of Battleford Mayor Ames Leslie said he is keeping a close eye on the health services side of the budget, to see how the province distributes some of that “newfound wealth” from the federal government, because the town knows it has some aging infrastructure in the community, with the Battlefords Union Hospital and Battlefords District Care Centre.

“Also, I’m just looking to see if there may be more funding for law enforcement and the RCMP to help us battle some of the actions that we are having in our community,” he adds.

Leslie said some good progress has been made with the RCMP’s Gang Task Force, and drug enforcement efforts.

“Hopefully, we can find some permanent solutions, and some funding to make that a reality,” he said.

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Looking at challenges, Leslie said he would like to see the next provincial budget be more mindful of municipalities’ needs.

“My big one would be the PST on municipal construction,” he said. “I know it’s been in the media a lot lately… But it’s something I’ve actually brought forth to Premier [Scott] Moe and our MLAs at the time for the last three or four years.

Leslie said it “really puts a hard impact on the town’s taxpayers” when the town also has raise funds for the PST on a project.

“I know the government has a roundabout way in which they say it [the PST funds collected] comes back to the municipalities,” he said.

But, Leslie said, it still means the town has to raise funds to cover that PST off in the first place.

“I’d love to see that gone,” Leslie said.

City of North Battleford Mayor David Gillan said the city continues to advocate to the province for the municipality’s needs. He adds supporting advanced education especially is a high priority.

“The City has many ongoing conversations with the province and our local MLA relating to programs, infrastructure, and services that would be beneficial to residents of our community,” Gillan said in an email to battlefordsNOW. “As mentioned in the recent State of the City address, the City of North Battleford continues to encourage all higher education opportunities in the region, specifically the construction of a new North West College campus in the city. The City fully supports this opportunity for the province’s investment in the future of our community.

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Angela.Brown@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @battlefordsnow