More than $110,000 in CBT community funding was distributed among 20 groups at Monday night’s city council meeting.
The largest grants were given to SculptureWalk ($20,000), Castlegar and District Recreation Centre for Summer Cool Camps ($14,000), Habitat for Humanity West Kootenay ($14,000), Castlegar Sunrise 2000 Rotary Club and Castlegar Rotary Club for the Twin Rivers Park outdoor exercise equipment ($15,000) and the Castlegar Arts Council for July’s Kootenay Festival ($10,000).
Twenty-six groups applied, and all were invited to make presentations in April. Mayor Lawrence Chernoff said the presentations really helped council make their decisions.
“The presentations are key because you don’t always get the good information on paper,” he said. “When people come, you get a better insight as to what they’re really asking for.”
Once the presentations were over, Chernoff said each councillor made their own recommendations.
“Everybody did that on an individual basis,” he said. “We averaged that out and … we went back and did some minor corrections.”
Chernoff said it’s always tough to decide who should receive funding.
“We try to give as many groups money that’s available out of the $110,000,” he said. “Everybody needs money so how do you fulfill all those?”
Last month, the Regional District of the Central Kootenay voted to change the funding formula, which would see some communities gain funding, while Castlegar and Nelson would lose some, but Chernoff said he won’t let the city’s funding go down without a fight.
“I’m not actually sure that’s a done deal, let’s put it that way,” he said.
If the funding formula is changed for next year, Castlegar would lose $10,000.
Chernoff believes the strategy has worked well until this point and there is no use in changing it.
“Up to this point we feel it’s done a great job with the formula we’ve had but to change the formula is not really beneficial to the big communities that want to give out as much money as possible,” he said.
He added that, with funding already stretched, losing the $10,000 would see up to 10 groups impacted.
The CBT grants were distributed the following way:
1. Castlegar SculptureWalk Society - $20,000
2. Castlegar Sunrise 2000 Rotary Club and Castlegar Rotary Club (Twin Rivers Park
Outdoor Exercise Equipment) - $15,000
3. Habitat for Humanity West Kootenay (Castlegar Home Build) - $14,000
4. Castlegar and District Recreation Centre (Summer Cool Camps 2011) - $14,000
5. Castlegar Arts Council (Kootenay Festival) - $10,000
6. Castlegar Friends of Parks and Trails Society (Maintenance of Recreational Trails) -
$8,415
7. Castlegar and District Public Library (Children’s Area Renovation) - $5,000
8. Columbia & Western Trail Society (brochure and website) - $3,500
9. ShelterGuides: Respite Care and Home Share Training and Support (website design and
curriculum development) - $3,000
10. Dam City Rollers Castlegar - $2,500
11. Kinnaird Park Community Church (KPImpact Program) - $2,500
12. Wildsight (Beyond Recycling Program) - $2,194
13. Kootenay Family Place (Beautiful Beginnings – All About Breastfeeding) - $2,000
14. Canadian Red Cross (HUBSCRUB machine purchase) - $1,647.50
15. Kootenay Food Strategy Society (Castlegar Grow-a-Row) - $1,500
16. Castlegar Garden Club (10th anniversary Castlegar & area garden tour) - $1,150
17. Kootenay Swim Club - $1,000
18. Twin Rivers Chorale Society - $1,000
19. West Kootenay Brain Injury Association - $1,000
20. Kootenay Columbia Educational Heritage Society - $629