Meaford’s primary facilities are getting old, and last week council was asked by staff for some direction in order to plan for the future of these facilities.
A report presented to council on July 13 focused on five primary municipal facilities. The municipal administration office on Trowbridge Street that was built in 1966, the old library next door, used today for municipal administration which was built in 1935, the Meaford & St. Vincent Community Centre and arena, built nearly 50 years ago in 1977, the much loved Blue Dolphin swimming pool, which is now 60 years old, having been built in 1966, and the youngest of the facilities, the building on the 7th Line that houses Meaford’s council chamber at just 32 years old, built in 1994.
Council was asked if they wanted to maintain the status quo, which would require some $12.6 million over the next few years to keep the facilities operating as best as possible, or if council wanted to spend $200,000 in order to study the potential of merging the five facilities into one mega facility that would house all of the mentioned facilities on one property.
There was no estimate provided in the report of what a multi-use facility might cost, but staff suggested during discussion with council that it could be $60 to 80 million, though I suspect it would be more.
It is a challenging discussion for any rural council with limited funding, and adding to the challenge is that opinions vary widely.
For all of the more than two decades that I have lived in Meaford I have heard folks complain about the state of our municipal facilities, particularly the arena, and there have long been calls for this municipality to develop a new recreation centre that would include a new arena and an indoor swimming pool. Some would also like to see a gym and walking track included in such a facility.
What people desire and what a municipality can actually afford are often very different. As often as I have heard from folks wanting state of the art, modern recreational facilities, I also hear from folks who are at their limit, their wallets stretched as far as they can be, and they simply don’t want to see their property taxes increase, even by a penny.
As was noted by staff during the July 13 meeting, if you ask someone if they would like a Ferrari, they are likely to say yes, until you tell them the price tag.
Merging municipal administration offices and the council chamber with recreational facilities into one mega facility can make a lot of sense for larger municipalities, but a price tag of $80 million or more can be a real challenge for a small municipality, and would certainly require increasing property taxes, or long-term debt – or both.
When it comes to such projects, provincial and federal grants are often mentioned, but such grants are few and far between. When they do come available, there are 444 municipalities in this province all competing for the few available grants, and we often see grant applications rejected. So while funding from upper levels of government is always a possibility, there are no guarantees, and receiving such a grant would be like winning the municipal lottery.
A report presented to council in April 2022 estimated that the arena alone required renovation and rehabilitation that would cost $12 million. A second report presented at the same meeting suggested that the Blue Dolphin swimming pool rehabilitation could cost $1.5 million. Aside from some bandage-like treatment, little has been done to either facility in the four years since as there simply has not been funding to do so, and no magical grants have presented themselves.
While some express a desire (often loudly) for this municipality to invest in a modern recreation centre that would include the arena, an indoor pool, a gym, a community centre, and potentially other facilities, there are also those who would be just as happy to maintain the status quo and let our facilities continue to age, maintaining them, and keeping them operational as best as possible.
Others will point out that this municipality already struggles to maintain our roads and bridges to a standard that residents expect, and at some point in the future we will need to expand our wastewater treatment plant, that at last estimate is expected to cost some $120 million. Roads and bridges and wastewater treatment plants are necessities, not wants, and they must always come before the ‘wants’ of a community, but there must also be a balance, and finding that balance can be a challenge for any small town council.
We must also be open to partnering with neighbouring municipalities when it comes to recreation, something that I have been hearing discussed in the council chamber for many years. We might have to face the reality that one municipality has an arena that is used by two or more municipalities, while another municipality might have the regional indoor swimming pool, while another might have a gym facility with a walking track and so on.
The state of our municipal facilities and what to do about them will no doubt be a top focus for the next term of council, as these facilities aren’t getting any younger, and something will need to be done at some point, particularly for the arena and public swimming pool – but what can this municipality truly afford to to? That will be a major question for the next term of council and residents of this municipality.
The $200,000 study, which council ultimately approved to proceed, will be included in the 2027 municipal budget, and the next term of council could decide to pull it from the budget, and opt instead to maintain the status quo. If the study proceeds, public input will be sought, and that will be crucial for the process, as it will help to determine the municipal facilities that ratepayers expect, and what they are willing to pay for. So if and when that time comes, be sure to be part of the process, and provide your input – the more input from the public the better for such a major proposal.
