NEWSLETTER May 19, 2023: Did Oak Bay Just Win the Lottery? Well…
Note: The Newsletter is 2 1/2 pages long. The information is provided to alert residents to the financial impact a May 8th, 2023 Council agenda item (7.2) outcome will have on the District’s property taxes. The newsletter’s information analyzes the information provided in Oak Bay’s new Deputy Director of Strategic Initiatives 21 page “Growing Communities Fund Report and an 11 age PowerPoint Presentation.
Vancouver Sun Article: “All of B.C.’s 188 municipalities and regional districts will be eligible for funding from the (Provincial Government's) $1-billion fund in order to pay for new infrastructure and amenities, such as recreation facilities, transit services, and parks.” Funding allocations will be based on each municipality’s population size and growth.
Oak Bay’s allocation is $4,8 million dollars. Staff obviously overwhelmed by the size of this new one-time funding source, introduced it at Council on May 8, 2023 as, “This is the single largest, most flexible, non-competitive grant Oak Bay has ever received”, Council spent almost three quarters of the meeting’s first two hours deciding how to spend David Eby's meager and misleading $4.8 million dollars.
It was apparent from the outset that Council and Staff consider the Province has given them the pot of gold at the end of the financial rainbow. However, to put this one-time ”windfall” into perspective the facts are:
Oak Bay Watch Perspective
Besides being totally inadequate, Mr. Eby’s infrastructure funding formula doesn’t take into account factors such as: not all municipally infrastructures were created at the same time. Many will have older the pipes, roads etc. The stress new housing will have on them will have a greater impact (read Oak Bay); some municipalities are better off financially than others, as they have significant business taxes. If this “growth plan” doesn’t reduce housing prices (growth hasn’t reduced them anywhere yet) how will new immigrants be able to afford BC’’s housing and rental prices.
However, Mr. Eby’s $4.7 million token payment should be accepted for what it is, a token effort used to achieve a specific effect: that is, a one-time payment “for future growth and build amenities to support housing developments”.
As indicated It was reported by the Vancouver Sun that the intent of the Province’s grant is “to pay for new infrastructure and amenities (such as recreation facilities, transit services, and parks). It is our opinion Good luck with that one.
It is also not clear to us how Oak Bay residents will fare given that a large part of the District’s densification initiatives will add many more residents without adding the revenue for the increased demand on the District’s services and amenities. This is besides the costs of dealing with the other problems associated with being a multi-dwelling, city of landlords.
It is apparent that Oak Bay Council and staff have gone overboard selling Mr. Eby’s “You have just won the lottery concept”. Council on May 8th considered the $4.8 million a windfall. Staff in support, provided a 21 page “Growing Communities Fund Report along with an 11-page PowerPoint Presentation. Oh yes, Council has recently created another new senior administrative staff position. It seems the District was in need of a Deputy Strategic Initiatives Director.
There are now two senior staff on board writing annual priority reports, at a cost of what must be approaching or exceeding $300,000 a year. Let it never be said that Oak Bay Council spends your tax dollars in half measures or is concerned about the impact administrative staff costs have on its property tax payers.
One has to wonder what the Chief Administrative officer is doing these days now that all the new administrative staff have taken over many of their previous duties. The same holds true for the new 2 Strategic Priority Initiatives Directors' time. After all, providing the District’s priority reports was only a small part of previous Chief Administrative Officers’ job description.
It is apparent to us the major flaw in the Provincial Growing Communities Funding Plan appears to have been missed. The grant is a one-time contribution while, the property taxpayer's municipal costs, resulting from all of the impacts of the Plan’s growth, will not only be far more substantial, but continual.
May 8, 2023 Council Meeting – Agenda Item 7.2 Growing Community Fund
At the meeting there was much discussion about how the Provincial $4.8 Grant should be allocated. Staff had provided their “Strategic Considerations” and Council suggested a whole lot more. Apparently recognizing the District had not received the all of the billion dollar Growing Communities Fund, Council decided to table agenda item 7.2.for “fuller discussions” at a future meeting. All of these pressing and expensive needs indicate:
Oak Bay Watch: Its quite clear to us that: the more the administrative staff is increased the more help (consultants and staff) they say they need to do the job they were hired to do. Recommending hundreds of thousands of GCF dollars to improve efficiencies, streamlining and to contract consultants, is not sound financial planning. Streamlining and efficiencies are what a CAO and department heads are supposed to do. Also a lot of the 5 pages of work outlined in the Staff’s Growing Communities Fund Report’s Appendices #1 & #2, is part of a municipal department's normal operations.
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Home “Nothing is inevitable if you are paying attention” Oak Bay Watch
Oak Bay Watch is a volunteer community association and its members have a variety of professional backgrounds in both the public and private sector.
*******Please help us continue to provide you with information about Community concerns and Council decisions and actions. Oak Bay Watch members also help community groups with their specific development concerns. Donate to Oak Bay Watch - even $5 or $10 dollars provides expenses for door- to- door handouts and helps us maintain our website. Oak Bay Watch is committed to ensuring the Community gets the full range of information on budget, governance and all key development issues – a well-informed opinion cannot be made without this.
(Please use Donate Button at bottom of oakbaywatch.com Home Page)
Keep informed and sign up for our newsletter – bottom of Newsletter Menu Item.Newsletters
Note: The Newsletter is 2 1/2 pages long. The information is provided to alert residents to the financial impact a May 8th, 2023 Council agenda item (7.2) outcome will have on the District’s property taxes. The newsletter’s information analyzes the information provided in Oak Bay’s new Deputy Director of Strategic Initiatives 21 page “Growing Communities Fund Report and an 11 age PowerPoint Presentation.
Vancouver Sun Article: “All of B.C.’s 188 municipalities and regional districts will be eligible for funding from the (Provincial Government's) $1-billion fund in order to pay for new infrastructure and amenities, such as recreation facilities, transit services, and parks.” Funding allocations will be based on each municipality’s population size and growth.
Oak Bay’s allocation is $4,8 million dollars. Staff obviously overwhelmed by the size of this new one-time funding source, introduced it at Council on May 8, 2023 as, “This is the single largest, most flexible, non-competitive grant Oak Bay has ever received”, Council spent almost three quarters of the meeting’s first two hours deciding how to spend David Eby's meager and misleading $4.8 million dollars.
It was apparent from the outset that Council and Staff consider the Province has given them the pot of gold at the end of the financial rainbow. However, to put this one-time ”windfall” into perspective the facts are:
- While a billion dollars sounds like an impressive amount, according to the Vancouver Sun it is shared by 188 BC municipalities. Therefore, this payout only averages $5.3 million dollars per municipality. Its ambitious intent is to finance the impacts of the Province and Development Industries ’supply-side housing strategy: i.e., build, build, build will make housing and rents affordable.
- The Province’s grant allocation formula is based solely on population and size (growth) which means the smaller municipalities get less than the average amount. (For more information see Bay Watch Perspective).
- At face value Oak Bay’s $4.8 million grant would only cover about a half of the $8.7 million estimate required to upgrade Canarvon Park (not even that, if those costs increase). $3.1 million of the Provincial grant would only pay for 3 of the District’s priority items: the required Monterey Centre roof replacement (1.5M); the rec centre’s fitness area improvements (1M) and the new required remote office space at 1538 Monterey. The upgrade cost, to accommodate the burgeoning administrative staff. is $635,000. Additionally, the full amount of the Marina Building upgrades hasn’t been disclosed yet, however these costs also will be in the millions.
- A municipality’s share of replacing a major amenity can be in the tens of millions of property tax dollars. For example, Esquimalt’s public safety building has increased by 50% in the past two years from $42 million to $62 million.
Oak Bay Watch Perspective
Besides being totally inadequate, Mr. Eby’s infrastructure funding formula doesn’t take into account factors such as: not all municipally infrastructures were created at the same time. Many will have older the pipes, roads etc. The stress new housing will have on them will have a greater impact (read Oak Bay); some municipalities are better off financially than others, as they have significant business taxes. If this “growth plan” doesn’t reduce housing prices (growth hasn’t reduced them anywhere yet) how will new immigrants be able to afford BC’’s housing and rental prices.
However, Mr. Eby’s $4.7 million token payment should be accepted for what it is, a token effort used to achieve a specific effect: that is, a one-time payment “for future growth and build amenities to support housing developments”.
As indicated It was reported by the Vancouver Sun that the intent of the Province’s grant is “to pay for new infrastructure and amenities (such as recreation facilities, transit services, and parks). It is our opinion Good luck with that one.
It is also not clear to us how Oak Bay residents will fare given that a large part of the District’s densification initiatives will add many more residents without adding the revenue for the increased demand on the District’s services and amenities. This is besides the costs of dealing with the other problems associated with being a multi-dwelling, city of landlords.
It is apparent that Oak Bay Council and staff have gone overboard selling Mr. Eby’s “You have just won the lottery concept”. Council on May 8th considered the $4.8 million a windfall. Staff in support, provided a 21 page “Growing Communities Fund Report along with an 11-page PowerPoint Presentation. Oh yes, Council has recently created another new senior administrative staff position. It seems the District was in need of a Deputy Strategic Initiatives Director.
There are now two senior staff on board writing annual priority reports, at a cost of what must be approaching or exceeding $300,000 a year. Let it never be said that Oak Bay Council spends your tax dollars in half measures or is concerned about the impact administrative staff costs have on its property tax payers.
One has to wonder what the Chief Administrative officer is doing these days now that all the new administrative staff have taken over many of their previous duties. The same holds true for the new 2 Strategic Priority Initiatives Directors' time. After all, providing the District’s priority reports was only a small part of previous Chief Administrative Officers’ job description.
It is apparent to us the major flaw in the Provincial Growing Communities Funding Plan appears to have been missed. The grant is a one-time contribution while, the property taxpayer's municipal costs, resulting from all of the impacts of the Plan’s growth, will not only be far more substantial, but continual.
May 8, 2023 Council Meeting – Agenda Item 7.2 Growing Community Fund
At the meeting there was much discussion about how the Provincial $4.8 Grant should be allocated. Staff had provided their “Strategic Considerations” and Council suggested a whole lot more. Apparently recognizing the District had not received the all of the billion dollar Growing Communities Fund, Council decided to table agenda item 7.2.for “fuller discussions” at a future meeting. All of these pressing and expensive needs indicate:
- Too much has been spent, and is recommended to be spent, for the ever-growing administrative staff complement and consultants to say what should be done and not on the funding to do it.
- Just how insufficient the provincial Government grant is. It cannot even begin to cover the costs for the District’s existing upgrades, let alone for new growth.
Oak Bay Watch: Its quite clear to us that: the more the administrative staff is increased the more help (consultants and staff) they say they need to do the job they were hired to do. Recommending hundreds of thousands of GCF dollars to improve efficiencies, streamlining and to contract consultants, is not sound financial planning. Streamlining and efficiencies are what a CAO and department heads are supposed to do. Also a lot of the 5 pages of work outlined in the Staff’s Growing Communities Fund Report’s Appendices #1 & #2, is part of a municipal department's normal operations.
--------------------------------------
Home “Nothing is inevitable if you are paying attention” Oak Bay Watch
Oak Bay Watch is a volunteer community association and its members have a variety of professional backgrounds in both the public and private sector.
*******Please help us continue to provide you with information about Community concerns and Council decisions and actions. Oak Bay Watch members also help community groups with their specific development concerns. Donate to Oak Bay Watch - even $5 or $10 dollars provides expenses for door- to- door handouts and helps us maintain our website. Oak Bay Watch is committed to ensuring the Community gets the full range of information on budget, governance and all key development issues – a well-informed opinion cannot be made without this.
(Please use Donate Button at bottom of oakbaywatch.com Home Page)
Keep informed and sign up for our newsletter – bottom of Newsletter Menu Item.Newsletters