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Council approves 2010 capital budget

By: Bartley Kives

Posted: 12/15/2009 12:25 PM | Comments: 0 (including replies)

WINNIPEG - City council has approved Winnipeg's 2010 capital budget, a $431 million blueprint for spending on infrastructure improvements and equipment purchases next year.

Council voted 13-3 to approve the capital budget, which includes more than $50 million for regional roads around Waverley West, $8 million for improvements to Assiniboine Park and $3.5 million to buy a police helicopter.

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Couns. Jenny Gerbasi (Fort Rouge), Harvey Smith (Daniel McIntyre) and Lillian Thomas (Elmwood) voted against the budget.

The nearly three-hour debate saw opposition councillors call for a formal report about the costs and benefits of the new police aircraft. A formal report is bound for council early next year, Mayor Sam Katz has said.

The budget debate also saw duelling motions about rapid-transit funding.

Fort Rouge Coun. Jenny Gerbasi wanted the city to insert $63 million into the budget forecast to cover the city's third of the $189 million cost of the second phase of the southwest rapid-transit corridor.

That motion failed 10-6, as a majority of councillors heeded Katz's plea not to pressure other levels of government into funding announcements.

St. Norbert Coun. Justin Swandel, meanwhile, moved a motion to commit the city to $250 million in rapid-transit funding, provided the province agree to drop the requirement for the city to take an extra nitrogen-removal step as part of the city's $1.8 billion waste-water upgrade.

The province and city have been embroiled in a dispute over the environmental benefits of nitrogen removal. The city claims it will increase costs while doing nothing to improve the Lake Winnipeg ecosystem, as a majority of freshwater scientists believe phosphorus-removal is the key to reducing or reversing the eutrophication of Manitoba's largest lake.

Swandel's motion also failed 10-6.

Transcona Coun. Russ Wyatt authored a third amendment to insert $290,000 in funding into the budget to build a square in Transcona. That motion was approved 15-1.

Today's meeting also saw longtime Winnipeg activist Nick Ternette tell council he will retire from public life early in the new year.

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