Halifax capital budget to fund $138M worth of projects

Halifax regional council has decided on the list of capital projects to be funded with next year's budget.

When the proposed capital budget was first presented in early December, it totalled $159 million. The revised budget, which councillors deliberated on Wednesday, totals $138 million.

Councillors questioned parts of the budget in December, leading staff to make several changes.

Staff with the Halifax Regional Municipality found $100,000 to do the design work on the artificial turf in Cole Harbour. Approximately $2 million worth of construction will be in a subsequent budget.

Coun. Darren Fisher was also pleased that a request by local soccer groups is being considered. They want to put in footings for domes that can be snapped on for the winter and taken off for the summer.

"A domed field is needed, not just for soccer, so it should be considered during the design stage," he said.

No money yet for boat club, bike lane

There wasno money set aside for renovations to the St. Mary's Boat Club in Halifax or a new bike lane for the Macdonald Bridge. City officials insist both proposals need a lot more study to determine the costs.

Coun. Jennifer Watts was concerned there was no timeline for the bike lane project. She doesn't want the city to miss out on an opportunity to partner with the Halifax-Dartmouth Bridge Commission while it works on the redecking project.

"At least council agreed to have a progress report by the end of July," Watts said. "So there still could be public consultations in the fall and time to get into the budget for 2016."

Other capital projects got rejected altogether.

Coun. Russell Walker wanted to add $200,000 worth of paving at the parking lot of the new Mainland Common off-leash dog park.

"This parking lot is shared with the baseball diamond," Walker said. "Without paving it's going to be sheer bedlam because there are 20 cars a day now using the dog park and it's just a mish mash."

But council didn't agree.

McNabsIsland proposal turned down

"Frankly, I think we've spent enough on dogs for a little while," said Coun. Tim Outhit. "And I'm a dog owner and a dog lover and a dog park user."

The proposal to spend $50,000 on trails along McNabs Island was also turned down. City staff pointed out it's a provincial island with a federal park, and doesn't meet the municipal mandate of creating a network of active transportation trails.

Coun. Bill Karsten was disappointed with the decision, saying the city has helped in the past and the municipal dollars have leveraged more grants from other levels of government. Other councillors suggested there should be a budget for recreation trails.

A final vote on both the 2015-2016 capital and operating budgets is expected in mid-April.

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