Town of Coaldale reports $2 Million operational budget surplus in 2020 audited financial statements
For the 2020 financial year, the Town of Coaldale is pleased to report that, due to financial management and cost saving measures, the Town is reporting an operating surplus of over two million dollars. The Town’s financial statements have been audited by Avail CPA LLP, to which a clean (unqualified) audit report has been issued. This ensures that the Town’s financial statements are prepared and presented in accordance with Canadian public sector accounting standards
“Our audited financial statements are always posted publicly to our website and residents are encouraged to read through the reports to learn more about our financial standings,” said Kyle Beauchamp, Chief Financial Officer at the Town. “The financial statements include comprehensive information regarding Town’s fiscal performance for 2020 and our current financial position.
The 2020 audited financial statements highlight the results of a number of intuitive cost-saving measures Council and implemented in 2020.”
“We’re always happy to talk to residents about the Town’s finances,” said Cameron Mills, the Town’s Manager of Economic Development. “We live in an age where there is potentially a lot of misinformation out there, so the release of the Independent Auditor’s Report is great for the Town because it allows us to show our residents the facts about the hard work that we’ve done to contain costs and come in under budget. This is also in spite of the fact that Coaldale actually collects less revenue than comparably sized municipalities in the province all while we make major generational investments in new infrastructure to support our continued growth and prosperity.”
Operational Highlights from the 2020 Audited Financial Statement
The Town of Coaldale remained fiscally strong regarding the management of its operational budget despite the challenges brought on by COVID-19. The financial statements show an operating surplus of $2,034,615.
“We’re very pleased that we’ve been able to maintain a healthy balance sheet throughout a year of financial uncertainty,” said Coaldale Mayor Kim Craig. “This surplus is just another demonstration of our administration’s sensible budget management practices and highlights our continued growth potential.”
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“As a team, administration has been extremely focused on keeping our financial footing throughout the pandemic,” added Beauchamp. “The $2 million surplus will be invested directly back into the Town through various capital asset investments to continue making Coaldale a vibrant and growing community.”
Other from the audited financial statements include:
• Wages and salaries under budget by 11% ($647,596)
• Contracted and general services under budgets by 11% ($605,380)
• Materials, good and utilities under budget by 15% ($489,056)
Capital Highlights from the 2020 Audited Financial Statement
In 2020, as partial fulfillment of Council’s Capital Budget (2018-2021), the Town invested an additional $9,160,424 into capital assets and infrastructure enhancements. Capital assets provide long-term benefits to the Town by improving the quality of life and the level of services provided to the taxpayer and help attract additional investment into the community. Some of the major capital investments made in 2020 are as follows:
• Main Street revitalization $3.3 million
• Pathway network – Phase 1 - $616K
• Completion of the Fire hall renovation & expansion project - $1.2 million
• New street sweeper - $265K
• 8th Street South and North enhancements $500K
• New SCBA Air Packs for the Fire Department - $233K
• NE Industrial Park improvements and expansion - $590K
• Wastewater lift station upgrades - $320K The Town received a total of $4,431,511 in grant funding and contributed assets in 2020 to make many of these projects possible.
“Investing into our core infrastructure has been one of Council’s primary strategic priorities for several years now,” said Mayor Craig. “Projects like the Main Street revitalization will have a positive effect on growth in the downtown core, bringing more businesses into the community and expanding our commercial tax base.
More information on the Town’s finances can be found at Coaldale’s new financial platform, Questica OpenBook, at coaldale.openbook.questica.com.