Emokhare Paul Anthony
Daily Herald
Prince Albert city council has approved a $70,000 funding shortfall for Rotary Adventure Park Enhancements at Monday’s council meeting.
The funds will come from the Community Services Land Fund Reserves. Coun. Dennis Ogrodnick made the motion to approve the funding, with Coun. Darren Solomon seconding. Ogrodnick said he’s heard a lot of positive comments about the Adventure Park, and not just from Prince Albert residents. He also supported the partnership with the Rotary Club of Prince Albert, who spearheaded the project.
“Yes, it does cost, but it makes a real jewel in the City and the province” Ogrodnick told council. “It makes (Prince Albert) a destination, so I fully support this $70,000.”
The Rotary Adventure Park and Zip Lines has over four acres of play space for people of all ages and offers an opportunity to play and work out in the backwoods.
The City of Prince Albert, Rotary Club of Prince Albert, and Malcolm Jenkins Foundation all provided funding for the project, along with several other donors. According to a report included in Monday’s agenda package, however, some of those other donations ended up being in kind donations instead of cash donations, which led to the funding shortfall.
The Rotary Club fundraised roughly $490,000 out of a $520,000 fundraising goal, while the Malcolm Jenkins Foundation donated $400,000.
According to the report, contractors identified contaminated soil and ground conditions which required additional time and materials, and in some cases forced contractors to move auger holes to a new location. This added nearly $27,000 in unexpected costs.
Prince Albert Mayor Greg Dionne said he’d heard “loud and clear” from Prince Albert residents that they appreciated the park, especially because it is free to use. Like Ogrodnick, he was eager to support covering the funding shortfall.
“This is a project that we can be very proud of,” Dionne said.
Coun. Terra Lennox-Zepp was the lone councillor to vote against the project. She said the Rotary Adventure Park is obviously a huge benefit for the City, but wasn’t comfortable funding the shortfall from the Community Services Land Fund Reserve. Instead, she told council, the cost should come out of the Fiscal Stabilization Fund.
The motion recommends that the Community Services Land Fund Reserve provide the funding for the final costs of the Rotary Adventure Park.
The Community Services Land Fund Reserve was established to fund the development of parks throughout the City. The Reserve is funded by an allocation of five per cent of property sales in the Land Fund.
—with files from Jason Kerr/Daily Herald
