Dates have been approved for the town's 2024 budget deliberations but we'll have to wait a couple of months to hear the full extent of public engagement.

The draft of the budget will be presented to town council by the administration on Oct. 23. Budget deliberations will be held on Nov. 14, 15, 21, and, if necessary, Nov. 23. It is anticipated to be adopted at council's Dec. 11 meeting.

Town council is expected to receive an update in September on recommendations of the task force, including the public engagement piece that was discussed at length at the July 10 council meeting. 

Last year's budget deliberations and public engagement came under fire by several town councillors as well as members of the community.

The result was the creation of a budget task force formed by three members of council (Marni Fedeyko, Patrick Wilson, Jeff Genung) and administration. It has been meeting to tackle the topics of messaging, resources, engagement, and the identification of short-, medium, and long-term wins. Some changes are already in the works and are anticipated to result in some quick wins. Others will take longer to institute.

"I think the budget task force is informing this process in several important ways, namely what you'll see in terms of how the information is presented coming in the fall," town CAO Mike Derricott told council on July 10. "Some improvements that are recommended are there, as well as the communication and engagement piece, which we just saw as a result of the survey which absolutely has and will continue to have a direct impact on the budget. So, I think for me there's a clear line from some of the work that's happening at the task force level to the outcomes we're starting to see in the budget and we're looking forward to seeing that continue."

Town councillor Patrick Wilson was among those unsatisfied with how the budget has been laid out, believing it didn't provide enough information. He reviewed the budget process of several other Canadian municipalities, including the award-winning budget processes of Leduc, St. Alberta, Red Deer County, Edmonton, and Calgary.

"I was researching budgets around Alberta and even all over Canada to examine what other communities are doing better than us and where can we improve. We found all kinds of things, dramatic improvements in my opinion, of different ways to present the budgets that will give council and the public more information."

15,20, 25 ideas...he says he's lost track of the number of ideas he believes would be beneficial to incorporate.

Wilson says the community engagement piece was the major topic of the last task force meeting, and it's still up in the air.

"I think we're in really good shape everywhere except for that. I don't feel like we have council consensus on what the appropriate budget engagement looks like, and I still don't think we know that answer, because I think there's six or seven different answers around the table."

While appreciating the data collected from the recently completed third-party survey on the budget, town councillors Marni Fedeyko and Tara McFadden pressed the need to establish a robust public engagement.

"Public engagement to me is about going out there and having a real conversation with people on the streets about the budget, about what's coming out, and not just a survey that we're seeing six months before the budget," says Fedeyko. "I think that's one key part that I don't want to dispute, but I don't think that's the entirety of what I'm considering from a public engagement perspective when it comes to budget."

"I definitely want to see an improvement in what we're going to be bringing forward from the public and that doesn't include one-day standing at Spray Lakes, but multiple opportunities for people to comment, and that's what I love to see come forward from my participation on the budget task force."

She envisions multiple different ways to engage in different locations, and having council going to the public, and not the other way around.

"And if that's four different dates in September and we, you know, divide and conquer as a council to make sure that we have representation there from council. I think that would be a great way."

She doesn't believe the focus of the engagement should be an opportunity to listen to what they want and then that information comes back to council, and not necessarily on strictly the dollar signs.

Councillor McFadden expressed frustration with how the public engagement piece has not been finalized.

She highlighted the perennial award-winning process used by the City of Leduc, which has a smaller population than Cochrane, and championed the need to expand the opportunities to receive input on the budget.

"One of the items that I really did like about the Leduc process is they move their budget deliberations into the evening and incorporate a process by which the public could make a presentation or have questions in advance. I think that allows council to understand the emerging nature of the concerns and changes."

She says the survey completed is accurate to how people feel now, but I anticipate life will be different in the fall.

"I really like the Leduc process of being able to more deliberately engage with folks and to give people a chance to engage back."

Wilson expressed support for the idea of incorporating a question period.

Councillor Morgan Nagel said the budget process is boring to the general public. He believes they are not interested in the line-by-line details of a big fat document.

"I think what they care about Is they want to make sure their priorities, the things that matter to them, are being invested in. They also care that their taxes are at a level that they feel is affordable and fair, and I think the third thing they care about is that their money is being respected."

He saw the survey as a good first step in identifying priorities but sees value in adding further engagement and that council needs to determine the specifics.

"Maybe another look at priorities would be good, maybe a pop-up weekend or two would be good, and then perhaps a public hearing where people can come to ask questions. These are three very specific things we could do that would improve community engagement. I would encourage those who are interested in getting community engagement to help refine what it is we're asking of administration."

Mayor Jeff Genung wants to see a more detailed presentation on the draft budget to council so they can control the storyline.

Councillor Alex Reed believes there is value in providing a range of opportunities for engagement but also sees great value in the data provided by the survey.

The town hired the market and social research firm Advanis Inc. to gather feedback on town service levels and funding sources with a particular focus on obtaining the views of residents for the 2024 budget preparations.

By utilizing this more aggressive approach, Lisa Almond, town director of organizational strategy and culture, told council the town doubled the amount of feedback. By doing so, she said it ensured the information collected was statistically valid. 

Of the 684 respondents, 448 were through random phone calls, 196 responded via a postcard QR code, and 38 responded to a survey on Let's Talk Cochrane.

In 2022, 312 responded to the spring budget survey posed on Let's Talk Cochrane.

Related Stories