REQUEST FOR DECISION
DATE: March 15, 2017 Report No. FIN-17-005
TO: Laurie Hurst, Chief Administrative Officer
FROM: Ian Irvine, Director of Financial Services
SUBJECT:
Title
Infrastructure and Revitalization Reserve Fund Transferring Bylaw, 2017, No. 2892
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RECOMMENDATION:
Recommendation
That Council gives Infrastructure and Revitalization Reserve Fund Transferring Bylaw, 2017, No. 2892, first, second and third reading.
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RELEVANT POLICY:
Community Charter S.189
STRATEGIC RELEVANCE:
Identify infrastructure repair and proactively plan for replacement needs
Identify long term financial requirements for infrastructure
BACKGROUND:
During its meeting on March 6, 2017, Council approved the expenditure of up to $2,813,000 for the Esquimalt Town Square Remediation project costs. Typically, these costs would be funded through the acquisition of long term debt to spread out the costs over a number of years. Due to the timing of the project initiation, the option of obtaining long term debt from the Municipal Finance Authority was not available. Another potential option for funding capital projects is the Capital Projects Reserve Fund however the current balance in the Reserve Fund is not sufficient to fully fund the project costs.
In 2014 the Township also established an Infrastructure and Revitalization Reserve Fund and as of December 31, 2016 it contains an available balance of $3,479,000 which is sufficient to fully fund the remediation project costs. However, the funding of these costs is not clearly permitted based on the wording in the bylaw which established the Fund.
The Community Charter permits transfers between reserve funds, through bylaw, if both the originating and receiving reserve funds have been set up for the purposes of funding capital projects. In instances where these transfers occur, the full amount including interest, are to be repaid to the initial reserve fund. The Charter indicates this repayment must be completed...
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