By Tom Mark

RDNO In Budget Mode

Feb 16, 2018 | 7:14 AM

The Regional District of North Okanagan is working on its 2018 budget with everything looking to be on course.

The Board of Directors met as Committee of the Whole this week to go over the numbers.

Chair Bob Fleming says while nothing is finalized, there should’t be much of an increase this year.

“Everything so far has sort of been in the neighbourhood of inflation or less. So we’re expecting overall the budget will be in that one to two per cent change which would put it in the area of inflation only.”

Fleming says the General Government administration for the past few years has been very cost conscious.

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“So in 2016 we actually reduced the requisition by one hundred thousand dollars and that’s been maintained since with minor changes so the requisition for General Government in 2015 was I think around a million dollars and it stayed at 900 thousand and change for the last three years.”

Reserves are also strong with a 2018 forecast surplus of 1.9 million dollars.

“Yeah so generally speaking things are in good shape and I think one of the big things that happened over the last several years is that each of the areas including General Government, but certainly the major services are all looking at long term plans for financing.”

Fleming says a major restructuring has been done on parks and financial plans are in place for water utilities including infrastructure renewal.

Directors are also hoping to finally have a social media presence for the District.

“This allows for a person that would be a sort of communications coordinator and part of that role would be getting us onto social media in an appropriate manner and monitoring it as well.”

Fleming says the Committee of the Whole approved the idea on an experimental basis for a three year period.

The position still has to approved by the full board and it would be funded from reserves so there is no impact on taxes.

He says a meeting at the end of the month will put together the various functions of the district from water and parks to solid waste.

by Tom Mark