Peachland cuts dog park, paving project

A $440,000 dog park struck Peachland councillors as an extravagance during a disease pandemic.

So the project was one of two items dropped from the town’s 2020 financial plan at a council meeting this week.

“I can’t even imagine spending $440,000 on a dog park fencing project right now,” Mayor Cindy Fortin said. “I wanted to have a dog park, but that’s just too much.”

“There isn’t a day in my lifetime that I’m going to agree to a $440,000 project to fence a dog park,” said Coun. Terry Condon.

“We have other things on our mind right now. (It) can be done at a later stage,” Coun. Patrick Van Minsel said of the dog park, adding he would like to see council work to reduce an overall municipal tax hike he said currently approached ve per cent.

Like other Okanagan councils, Peachland’s elected representatives suggested there was a need to practice significant municipal belt-tightening given the devastating economic damage already being caused by the spread of COVID-19.

“I think we need to find some efficiencies in our budget and lower the tax burden on our residents,” Van Minsel said. “Most of our businesses are closing. They’re going to have a hard time.”

The $440,000 Sanderson Road dog park fencing project, which included some roadworks and a parking lot, was dropped from the budget. So too was a $350,000 paving project for Thorn Road.

Town staff had actually suggested dropping the two projects as a way to save money for an anticipated sewering project, not as a way to offset the financial impacts of COVID-19 on taxpayers.

But councillors used the item to illustrate what they said was the need to trim necessary municipal spending given the current economic crisis.

More changes to the town budget are possible before it is given final adoption.