Valemount 2025 budget to include columbarium, economic recovery costs

By Abigail Popple, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, RMG

Valemount Council approved including a 5.5 per cent tax increase in the 2025 budget during a special meeting on March 19th. The increase is in line with the Village’s Improving Asset Management plan which consulting company Urban Systems produced in 2020.

Director of Finance Lori McNee presented the budget to Council and outlined new items in the budget.

Among the new budget items to be paid through taxes is the addition of a columbarium – a place to store cremated remains – to the cemetery, which is projected to cost $74,000.

Additionally, the budget includes a $10,000 item to hire a summer student who can sort through the Village’s physical documents, McNee said. According to McNee’s presentation, this likely puts the Village in violation of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act – which obligates public bodies to respond to freedom of information requests and destroy personal records after a certain period of time.

“We have a substantial amount of boxes at our community hall right now – the last count is over 100 boxes,” McNee said. “If we get a request for any information, we have to go through every one of the boxes. Not only is it [time-consuming] for staff, but if we miss something, [or] if there’s personal records there, it’s a real concern for the organization.”

Staff have asked for a summer student to do this job in the past, but McNee said she would recommend the student be included as a recurring budget item.

Improvements to the Sportsplex are also included in the budget. Public Works estimates that $15,000 will cover the cost of removing large rocks and filling potholes at the complex. 

Finally, McNee included a $12,000 item for economic recovery efforts. The mayor and CAO have accrued travel costs from traveling for in-person meetings with provincial and federal representatives as they try to secure funding for Valemount businesses suffering from the economic impacts of last summer’s highway closures, according to McNee. While the Village previously received $62,000 in grant funding from the Ministry of Emergency Management to hire consultants, the $12,000 in travel costs will be paid for through taxation.

Mayor Owen Torgerson asked if the $12,000 could be paid through the Resort Municipality Initiative, a Ministry of Tourism program which grants money to resort municipalities including Valemount. CAO Anne Yanciw said these funds can only be used for infrastructure projects, or to finance events that draw tourists.

Additionally, McNee asked Council to approve that staff look into the costs for paving Dogwood Street. Resident Junior Osadchuk wrote Council in October requesting that the Village seal coat Dogwood Street and add more lighting to the street.

“I did state that … due to the time it takes to receive quotes, grants, and implement the project, this would not be implemented in the 2025 budget,” McNee said. “So I was going to request that Council… ask staff to look into these requests and come back to Council with more information.”

Council approved McNee’s request to have staff research a potential Dogwood Street improvement project.

Council moved to approve McNee’s other additions to the 2025 budget. The budget will not be officially adopted until a special meeting on May 8th, when Council is expected to approve its five-year financial plan bylaw, which municipalities must produce annually according to the Local Government Act. There will be an opportunity for public comment before adoption, McNee said.

Council will consider giving first and second reading of the budget at its March 25th meeting, according to McNee. Afterwards, a presentation on the budget will be uploaded to the Village website and residents will have two weeks to review it and provide comments to Council.