Black Diamond approves capital budget with $550K paving project

Money for a paving project was added to Black Diamond’s capital budget during a special council meeting on Tuesday, April 19.

Council unanimously approved the 2022 capital budget, with an amendment added for paving along 4 Street SW from Centre Ave. to 3 Ave. The paving project is estimated to cost $550,000, which will come from capital reserves, and Council determined that the final cost for the paving cannot be more than $700,000.

Sharlene Brown, the CAO for Black Diamond, said the Town had already planned to do infrastructure work in the area due to a high number of water main repairs in ,and that replacing aging infrastructure will help reduce water lost due to leaks.

During the meeting, Council decided to add paving, which will go through the design and planning stage before a final cost and timeline for the work is known and it can be approved.

“We’re hoping that we get all our construction projects done by December 31 this year,” Brown said.

“Long term, what we are looking at, is we are trying to fix the infrastructure and then do all the road work on top of it."

Other projects planned for this year include storm water management and overland flow projects to improve drainage, due to increasing storms and rainfall, she said.

“We want to make sure that we’re well prepared for the current climate conditions,” she said

The 2022 capital budget, with the amendment for the paving project, is $4,085,687.00. It was passed unanimously. Coun. Dunning was not in attendance to vote.

The capital budget is not funded through taxes, but through grants and Town reserves.

The operating budget, separate from the capital budget, is planned to increase 1.82 per cent from last year, but has not yet been approved.

The budget is planned to be discussed at the May 4 council meeting. Information on the tax rate will also come forward in May, Brown said.