Huron-Kinloss council

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Huron-Kinloss will continue to pay the hydro bill for the Lucknow Community Centre. Otherwise, the volunteer group in charge of the facility could not afford to operate it.

That's the word from spokesman Allan Gibson who came to the township's general committee meeting Monday night (April 5), to discuss the costs for heat and hydro for that building.

Last year, the township agreed to take over paying the hydro bill so the volunteers could retrofit the facility and make some money by renting the hall.

Treasurer Jodi MacArthur said the hydro bill in 2008 was about $11,000 to $12,000. Last year, it was about $700/month which equals $8,400 for the year, $3,000 less than the year before, she said.

Gibson said the group removed the electric heating system and installed a propane system which costs about $5,000/year. He said if the hydro is still at around $9,000 to $10,000/year, the group is no better off than before.

The community centre sees no revenue all winter, said Gibson, because there are no dances. It is rented about three to four times per month in the summer.

"It's the changing times," said councillor Anne Eadie. "There used to be dances every weekend."

Gibson asked what the township charges for rental of the Ripley complex and what it pays in cleaning costs.

Parks and recreation director Mike Fair said the hall rental fee is $400-$450, and the cleaning is done by the staff. Cleaning and maintenance amounts to about $2,000 to $3,000/year, he said, adding that it's also a smaller hall. The Lucknow hall is about twice the size.

Gibson said for the hydro bill to be so high, there must be a "demand" meter connected at the Lucknow hall.

Councillor Don Murray said he thought that was removed when the volunteer group received a Trillium grant a few years ago to do upgrades to the facility.

"We should contact Westario Power and find out whether that demand meter is still connected," said mayor Mitch Twolan, noting the township can look into that.

"We tried talking to them but they wouldn't do it for us," said Gibson. "They wouldn't even listen to us."

"I think $15,000/year for heat and hydro is really high," said Eadie.

"We can contact Westario Power, but we can't force them to change the meter," said MacArthur.

Gibson said that with the municipality paying the hydro bill last year, the group was actually able to make about $9,000. "We have $25,000 in reserves but that is needed for upgrades," he said. "We are planning to do the floor this year, and that will cost $3,000."

Twolan said the township will continue to pay the hydro bill for now while it looks into what can be done to disconnect the demand meter. He added that the township's auditor also requires a financial statement for the facility, filed by the volunteer group, just as other boards must do.

"Keep up the good work," he said. "We can help you out, but the township is not looking to take over another facility."

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Tuesday, April 06, 2010