Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek wants to use surplus Enmax dividends on urgent maintenance and upgrades to recreation facilities and to give the long-term parks fund a cash infusion.

The mayor is bringing forward a Notice of Motion for technical review to the April 15 Executive Committee meeting of Calgary city council with a proposal to split $46 million in excess surplus for parks, rec maintenance and placemaking programming with the Federation of Calgary Communities.

According to the mayor’s Notice of Motion, 15 per cent of city assets are in poor or critical condition, citing an underfunding of the Facilities Management – Annual Investment Program (AIP). The motion said that the fund is unable to keep up with the upkeep of aging community-based facilities.

In the city’s 2020 Infrastructure status report, the latest such report posted online, the majority of City of Calgary’s recreation infrastructure was rated fair, poor or very poor. An updated infrastructure status report was scheduled to be presented at the March 6, Infrastructure and Planning Committee, but wasn’t on the agenda.

City council recently approved a $15 million increase to the Capital Conservation Grant program to help major community-based lifecycle project, however, the mayor is hoping to see $20 million of the excess Enmax dividend put into the community recreation facilities.

“This work highlights my commitment to revitalize and build community spaces that will be the backdrop of family and neighbourhood memories for years to come,” the mayor told reporters on Thursday.

“I believe we can bring life into our neighbourhoods through tangible investments in amenities like splash pads recreation centres and waiting pools.”

Along with that investment, the mayor is hoping to take $23.15 million of the excess funding to top up the Enmax Parks Legacy Fund. This fund has been used in the past to help backstop such projects as the Bowness Park Lagoon, the Devonian Gardens, the Ralph Klein regional park and others. There are 17 other projects either in development or planned for the future.

One-time cash, as Enmax dividend stabilized

Last year, Calgary city council moved ahead with plans to change the way it collected the franchise fees. Previously, the amount collected floated along with the fluctuation of the Regulated Rate Option (now called the Rate of Last Resort). 

Enmax said Thursday that under the current dividend policy, the dividend is 30 per cent of the comparable net earnings, or $30 million, whichever is higher. Local Access Fees (LAF) (franchise fees) aren’t considered part of their revenue and therefore not included in that calculation. The dividend and the LAF are two different streams of revenue, they said.

In this case, the budgeted amount of the most recent dividend was $57 million, though the dividend was declared at $103 million. That left a $46 million excess to the budgeted amount.

“This won’t happen again, because we have changed the way we collect fees,” the mayor said.

In the past, any excess over the budgeted amount would typically go back into the Enmax Parks Legacy Fund, the mayor said. When asked if this could go to funding other needs in Calgary, or providing property tax relief to citizens, Mayor Gondek said this endeavour was a good way to allocate the additional money.

“I think it’s really important to spend this money wisely at a time when community associations have come and spoken to us regularly about the tough situations they are in, when we are seeing their community centres falling apart when they are wondering how they’re going to get their next grant to keep their community gardens going,” she said.

“I think this is a responsible way to reinvest in Calgary’s neighbourhoods, so that’s why I’m bringing this proposal forward.”

The mayor’s proposal also includes $2.85 million over three years to go towards Federation of Calgary Communities placemaking programs. She said hundreds of micro-programs across the city could be funded in that time.

If approved, the Notice of Motion would be forwarded to an upcoming full meeting of Calgary city council for debate.