When the City of Yellowknife releases its draft budget in January, some residents shouldn’t expect to see their spending wishes listed.
City councillors discussed the municipality’s upcoming 2024-25 annual budget at a meeting on Monday afternoon, including requests recently submitted by several residents – ranging from an outdoor hockey rink to improved cemetery maintenance – as well as funding requests from three non-profits.
While councillors said many of those proposals were good ideas, they were not in favour of city staff including them in the draft budget.
“This year, more than any year, we need a bare-bones budget, and I think that’s what the public are requesting from us and demanding from us,” councillor Steve Payne said, a position echoed by several others.
Mayor Rebecca Alty said while she did not support adding more…
