Estevan city council and its management team continue to wrestle with how to handle reduced funding from the provincial government.
Do they bite the bullet and tempt fate with the public by raising taxes? Do they cut a few capital projects that can wait for 2018, or do they cut operating expenses? Spending cuts aren’t as easy as they seem.
City manager Jeff Ward makes a great point when he says the emphasis on cuts should likely be on operating expenses. After all, it’s unlikely the grants-in-lieu of taxation from SaskPower and SaskEnergy will be restored in future provincial budgets.
These are spending cuts that have to be factored into the city’s budget moving forward, so it’s easier to cut from operations.
But we would urge council to avoid significant reductions in spending for the four cultural entities they support: the Estevan Art Gallery and Museum, the Souris Valley Museum, the Souris Valley Theatre and the Estevan Arts Council. Those four organizations were to receive $427,500 through this year’s budget.
Council hasn’t said whether those four agencies are at risk of losing some of their city support. All they have said is everything is on the table, with the exception of the widening and the resurfacing of King Street, which is understandably the top priority in this year’s budget.
The money that is in the operating budget for those four agencies (and the money collected for the Estevan Public Library and the Southeast Regional Library through the library levy) is money well spent.
We are blessed to have outstanding cultural services in this city that bring arts, live theatre, music, literature and more to the city.
The Estevan Art Gallery and Museum not only brings tremendous exhibits to Estevan, but they offer a variety of programs to people of all ages and backgrounds. The Souris Valley Theatre should be a tremendous source of pride for this community; it’s incredible that we can enjoy professional live theatre productions every summer.
The Souris Valley Museum is working hard to expand to a year-round facility; now is not the time to substantially slash their funding. And the Estevan Arts Council offers great shows and art classes during the fall and winter months.
All four of these organizations play a vital role in the life of the community. Reduce their funding, and they won’t be able to offer the same degree of programming, and the community will feel the affects.
Three of those organizations also offer outstanding summer programming for youths. The one that doesn’t, the arts council, is looking to change that.
Urban municipalities were fuming with the provincial government for slashing the grants-in-lieu without notice, after these municipalities had passed their budgets. But taking significant money away from cultural organizations will not make the situation any better.
