Council spending $274,200 from additional investment earnings – DiscoverMooseJaw.com

Moose Jaw city council decided to spend $274,200 of the additional $300,000 in investment earnings to fund one-time projects in 2025. 

The $25,800 left over will remain invested in the city’s portfolio. 

City administration presented $381,000 worth of projects that were in the 2025 budget and $605,228.33 worth of projects that were not included in the budget. 

Council passed a motion to use $65,000 in additional investment earnings to partially cover the Moose Jaw Police Service 2025 capital budget to offset shortfalls. 

Coun. Chris Warren put forward the motion to use $95,000 for current budget items. These included: 

• $25,000 to match the Export Canada FDI Investment Attraction grant (if successful) to hire a consultant to do an investment attraction report. 
• $10,000 for the Indigenous Procurement Policy. 
• $30,000 for a consultant for the accessibility plan. 
• $30,000 for recruitment services to fill management positions in 2025. 

Covering those projects helped reduce the mill rate by 0.25 per cent. 

“We are asking our taxpayers to pay an additional mill rate, even if it’s only a 0.24 or 0.25 mill rate increase. We’re asking our residents to fund these one-time programs for a year,” said Warren. 

The idea was discussed to spend over $99,000 for additional requests from third parties, but Warren voiced his concerns. 

“On the third party, I’m a little bit concerned that those third parties, if we do a one-time fund for some of that additional request in their budget, it’s actually more like part of their operating budget, like we here at the city. There will be an automatic gap next year, and possibly those groups looking to add additional amounts to catch up in 2026,” he said. 

Coun. Heather Eby was the lone councillor to vote against the $95,000 in spending. She said she wanted to invest in projects where people would see progress. 

“So, for me—and it’s just my opinion only—the $65,000 for police is fine, but I would like to see us use some of the one-time money to do some of these projects that the citizens will actually see with their own eyes,” Eby explained. 

She made a motion to fund the following projects, which passed, that were not in the 2025 budget: 

• $16,500 to remove about 25 dead trees in Rosedale Cemetery. 
• $15,700 to remove 17 dead trees in Smith Park. 
• $42,000 to replace the wood fence along the City Hall parking lot. 
• $40,000 for three new grader snow traps. 

Warren and Coun. Dawn Luhning were opposed to the Rosedale Cemetery tree removals; Warren, Luhning, and Mayor James Murdock were opposed to the Smith Park tree removals; and Warren and Coun. Jamey Logan were opposed to the wood fence replacement. The snow traps passed unanimously. 

Warren explained his concerns about spending funds on projects not within the budget. 

“I definitely could appreciate getting some of this work done, things that residents can see. I’d be a little concerned about doing that, wondering how they match up or are prioritized against other potential items that are currently unfunded in the capital budget,” he said. 

Director of Operations Bevan Harlton explained that the snow traps were not in the current budget because there was already a shortfall of $486,000 in the equipment reserve.