Community organizations are the necessary backbone of a thriving community.
Without them, advocating for the betterment of the places they live, municipalities would be fairly basic.
Strong community organizations, however, need the support of local governments in order to bear fruit.
In Boyle, the Greater Athabasca Community Foundation (GACF) is nearing its fundraising target for a splash park, a project with the noble goal to keep families in the community for recreation. When completed, children and their parents will have a great option for spending a day in the sun, a short walk away from home.
Over three years the GACF has raised $290,000 for the project, and is just shy of $20,000 to hit their final goal. GACF chair Lindsey Stanton said there were lots of families that worked “really, really” hard at holding hot dog sales and other fundraisers in order to scrape together the money.
The uncertainty lies in funding the splash park into the future, its operational costs.
Village of Boyle’s council passed a motion last January to approve the splash park project, under the stipulation that operational costs be split with Athabasca County 50-50.
Somewhere along the way, the message was not translated. In September, county council voted to decline Boyle’s request until further information was gained.
Further discussions have been halted until both councils could meet and discuss the matter at a joint meeting, which happened just after publishing time, Jan. 8.
Even if it is not exactly a 50-50 split, Athabasca County, and the village, should work to help the GACF see the summer spraying begin. It would only be fair for the county to pitch in, considering last year they agreed to pay 60 per cent of a $15.3 million new pool facility within the Town of Athabasca.
Municipalities do not always have the funds to approve every single project the community asks for, and that is to be expected; rural areas have their belts buckled pretty tightly. But when a group pulls together in the way the GACF has, with a resounding “yes” to a particular project, local governments need to find a way to make it happen.
