West Vancouver Council – Mon. Dec.

13, 2010
Alex Tunner, P.Eng.

A. W-VAN’S THREE FINANCIAL CHALLENGES

1. OPERATING COSTS TOO HIGH ( ≈ 30%) ... MULTIPLE

SOURCES
2. INFRASTRUCTURE RENEWAL ( ≈ $10M/year)
3. METRO-VAN INCREASES

 IT’S THE SYSTEM ... OVER TIME, CULTURE ... (Boiling Frog)

B. SYSTEM’S STATUS (2009)

1. RELUCTANCE TO ACKNOWLEDGE HIGH COSTS

2. NO INFRASTRUCTURE RESERVES (Annual Report,
p.61)
3. NO PLAN, NO RESERVE

 RECTIFY IN 2011 BUDGET ... ENVIRONMENT HAS IMPROVED

C. FINANCING ASSUMPTIONS

• EXISTING (OLD) SYSTEM

– PROPERTY TAX: 100% “GENERAL”; 0% INFRA –
WHY ??
– COMMUNITY CENTRE, $ = FROM PROPERTY VALUE
– WATER & SEWER INFRA, $ = FROM WATER, “USER
PAY”

 NEW, IN 2011 BUDGET

– ADDRESS #2, #3 (ABOVE) ... AIM = GFOA BUDGET
AWARD

West Vancouver Council – Budget 2011 – Mon. Dec. 13th, 2010. Page 1 of 2
 # 21

– USER PAY – OK, OPERATING COST – NOT CAPITAL

INFRA.
– INFRA RESERVE – CONSIDER SUGGESTION OF DEC.
th
6
– GENTLE COST CONSTRAINT, BUILD SOLID INFRA TAX
BASE

D. COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

• IT’S DIFFICULT !!
– A FEW LONE RANGERS (NO BARBARIANS) vs
FORTRESS
– COMPLEX SYSTEM, HARD TO UNRAVEL
– LIMITED OPPORTUNITY = UNREALISTIC (3 Min @
COUNCIL)
– N.I.H. = “NOT INVENTED HERE”, NO IMPACT, POOH,
POOH

 SUGGESTION
– ROUND TABLES OF YORE ... (REF: C.A. HANSARD)
– EARLY (MAY ??) – PARTICIPANTS SUBMIT IDEAS IN
ADVANCE

 IN THE 2011 BUDGET PROCESS 

Tackle the Fundamental Financial Challenges Facing W-Van

1. RECOGNIZE THAT COSTS ARE TOO HIGH:

• SET TARGETS FOR IMPROVEMENT ( ≈ 1%/year), THRU:
• EFFICIENCY, PROCEDURES, STAFFING, FLEXIBILITY
• WORK WITH STAFF ON DETAILS & INCENTIVES

2. BUILD AN INFRASTRUCTURE TAX BASE (RESERVE):

• TO FUND BOTH UTILITIES RENEWAL & METRO COSTS
• ALLOCATE A PORTION OF YEARLY NEW CONSTRUCTION
West Vancouver ACCUMULATE
• Council – Budget 2011 – Mon. AN ASSESSMENT
Dec. 13 th
, 2010. BASE, NOT DOLLARS
Page 2 of 2
• THAT’S “SAFER” AGAINST INFLATION & “MANIPULATION”