Thornhill regional district director Ted Ramsey is holding up a payment for the city-owned Heritage Park Museum, saying he’s not certain his constituents get any value from the museum containing a collection of historical log-built structures from the years just before and just after the turn of the 20th century.
Elected as Thornhill’s representative to the Kitimat-Stikine regional district board last fall after a four-year absence, Ramsey said he can think of better things to do with the payment he’s expected to approve.
“We could spend the money instead for our seniors, for instance,” he said of the $28,500 annual invoice sent by the city to the regional district.
“Really. It’s always baffled me. I have no idea. Why is Thornhill paying the bills for Heritage Park? What are we getting out of it,” he said, adding that he’s never been approached with information about Heritage Park or briefed on its activities.
“I’m just not paying my bill until I know what’s going on.”
The invoice sent by the city covers what it expects as a contribution by both Thornhill and by the rural area surrounding Terrace.
Based on population, Thornhill would cover roughly 40 per cent of the invoice and the larger rural area the remainder.
While Ramsey says he won’t pay Thornhill’s portion, Bruce Bidgood, the regional district director for the larger rural area, says he’ll authorize payment for the portion for his area.
But that’s just for this year as Bidgood said he did not want to necessarily leave Heritage Park in a budget lurch without sufficient prior notice.
“I just did not want to put Heritage Park into too much financial pressure,” he said.
The annual payment expectation dates back perhaps 10 years to a time when Heritage Park needed a financial boost for a specific reason, Bidgood said.
Payment then came in the form of a grant-in-aid, something that is just for one year and if it is to continue, must be approved each year by a regional district director.
But that never happened and gradually the practice of the city sending the regional district a bill became an accepted annual occurrence so that the regional district would pay approximately 30 per cent — a figure that is now set at $28,500 — and the city 70 per cent of a sum sent to the museum each year.
“Should we be funding Heritage Park? We all agree it offers a fine service. But perhaps we need a referendum to validate our decisions,” said Bidgood.
Such a referendum could pave the way to what’s called a benefiting area, in which property owners within a defined area are taxed to support a specific service.
That’s how, for instance, regional district residents help pay for the city’s recreational amenities.
Heritage Park is not the only service or facility to receive a grant-in-aid without a specific motion from the regional district board.
A list provided by the regional district includes the Terrace and District Arts Council, Riverboat Days, the Terrace Volunteer Bureau and the Hazelton District Cemetery.
In an email, regional district communications official Marta Nelson confirmed the regional district does not have a specific policy covering grants-in-aid but does plan to develop one soon.
The city itself faces a further challenge because it sent Heritage Park its own contribution and the share expected from the regional district earlier this year.
“The city forwards funds to Heritage Park early in the year so that they can fund their budget, and, as per our cost-sharing arrangement with the regional district, the city billed the regional district in June for their share of all cost-shared items,” indicated a statement from the city.
Payment of that invoice in full is due Aug. 1 meaning that if the regional district does not send the city its share, the city’s own finances will be affected.
Heritage Park earlier this year noted 40 years of operations and in addition to maintaining its collection of buildings, artifacts and an archive, hosts a wide range of community events and activities each year.