Redcliff Library (Photo by Ross Lavigne)

By Hayley Ferguson

Cuts Expected

Local groups worried about what provincial budget could mean

Oct 9, 2019 | 5:30 PM

Medicine Hat, AB – In an average year, the Redcliff Public Library relies heavily on the $30,000 they receive annually from the provincial government.

With just a few months left before the calendar turns to 2020, they’ve only seen half of that.

“The fact is, we don’t have that money in our bank account. So we still have utilities, insurance, fees for running the photocopier. All of that takes money. So without having the money in our bank account this late in the year, you have to pull from somewhere. And be prepared,” said library manager Tracy Weinrauch.

To start making up for the lack of funds, the library has decided to cut back hours during holiday weekends.

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Traditionally the library has just closed on the stat holiday. They will now close for the Saturday and Sunday connected to the holiday.

Although it may be a small cut, for now, Weinrauch says they need to start making changes.

“Every time you pay a necessary bill you know that’s money going out that you don’t know if you’re going to get back later on,” she said.

Another organization wondering what the budget holds is the Medicine Hat Women’s Shelter.

Executive Director Natasha Carvalho says they and other shelters meet with provincial officials together and doesn’t believe they will be affected.

“They have assured us that there will be no budget cuts to shelters and so we’re really hopeful and optimistic that they will see through on that promise. And that we will be ok during this time,” she said.

Carvalho does admit that even with that promise, it is nerve wracking to wait for the budget as they’ve been through budget cuts in the past.

“I think that’s what always happens right when you’re a non-profit and you rely on funding and grants and core funding,” she continued. “We had to face that a couple of years ago with our second stage where we were just low on funding. A couple of grants hadn’t come in. We were worried about how we were going to operate. And when you’re talking about closing the doors to a service like that, you’re talking about people’s lives. And it was a really horrible place to be in and thought ‘where are we going to send these women? What are we going to do?’”

It’s also expected that there will be cuts to municipal funding when the budget is handed down later this month.

The City of Medicine Hat currently receives about 15 million dollars in grant money every year for various infrastructure projects.

“We’re anticipating a reduction in grants. Those grants as we have budgeted for asset renewal or replacement of assets. And we have a lot of assets in the city. Some of them are above ground like roads and bridges. Many of them are underground like pipes,” Dennis Egert, the commissioner of corporate services, said.

Egert says that if they do see those cuts it will have a major impact on the city’s operations.

“We’re going to have to find another source to fund that expenditure,” he explained.

Until October 24th nobody is ready to make any kind of definite plans.

“If everything turns out great and they reinstate it, maybe our hours will just go back to normal and we’ll pretend this didn’t happen. But we’re expecting the worst,” Weinrauch sighed.