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Peace River town council debates 2023 budget

Dec. 27, 2022, Peace River, Alta. – Peace River town council and administration are working to finalize the 2023 budget.

Proposed projects in the budget discussions originated from the Five-Year Capital Plan. Proposed funding sources for each project helped to determine priority ranking on what could be potentially accomplished in 2023.

Proposed engineering projects are the Neighbourhood Infrastructure Renewal and the creation of a Climate Change Adaptation Plan.

Protective Services is considering a number of projects in 2023 including the replacement of a burn chamber for Phase 1 Training Simulator, purchase of a heavy-duty rescue truck, purchase of replacement vehicle extraction tools, purchase of an EMS Skid Unit, and purchase of a Lifepak 15 Defibrillator.

“Due to the stresses from the heat of the fires conducted in the burn chamber, it has reached its life expectancy and needs to be replaced. This is a high priority for the fire department so that they can continue conducting this essential training in a safe and controlled manner,” she adds.

Manzer explained the current heavy duty rescue truck has reached its end of service life and it is cost prohibitive to maintain it. The purpose-built rescue truck will provide a rapid response to rescue situations, like motor vehicle collisions, water/ice rescues, and would alleviate some use and wear and tear on larger pumper vehicles.

Council will have final 2023 budget discussions at December council meetings and hope to have the capital budget and utility fees approved by the end of 2022 along with an interim operating budget.