Jasper council examined a policy that will govern how it will distribute external wildfire relief funding to community organizations.
Doug Olthof, the municipality's housing and social recovery manager, explained at the Tuesday (Dec. 10) committee of the whole meeting how the policy sets out high-level parameters under which the municipality may distribute funding from external funders to local organizations.
“That is specifically important because of the established relationship with the Jasper Community Team Society and its requirements to distribute funding through the municipality,” Olthof said.
The Wildfire Community and Economic Recovery Fund would funnel financial support from the Jasper Community Team Society (JCTS) and any other external funders to organizations through two streams, which are social recovery and economic recovery from the wildfire.
Social recovery would encompass building community connection, enhancing services or infrastructure, advancing environmental stewardship and promoting community health, well-being and resilience.
Economic recovery includes developing employment skills or entrepreneurial skills, increasing jobs or businesses and promoting economic stability and resilience.
Although the fund would mainly support projects that occur within the Jasper townsite, it could also finance projects that support displaced residents.
Olthof noted the policy also provides a mechanism for grant applications to flow into the recently created Jasper Wildfire Recovery Funders Table, where various charities discuss applications and identify promising projects.
Mayor Richard Ireland took issue with the word “fund” in the policy, since the municipality was only supposed to be a conduit for external funding, not the source of the funding.
“When there is wording in the policy that speaks about ‘applicants,’ it leads to an inference that people can actually apply to this municipal entity for funding,” Ireland said.
Olthof replied the policy deals with both a process for receiving applications and a process for flowing funds to local groups, but he confirmed there was no fund held by the municipality.
CAO Bill Given said the policy could be revised to emphasize this dealt only with funding from external sources and not municipal tax dollars, and decisions are made by the funders table.
Coun. Ralph Melnyk said the policy should also clarify who the funders were so the public was aware of the funding source.
“And those sources probably don’t have unlimited funding and eventually we’ll come to a point they won’t be available in the community anymore,” he added.
The committee referred the policy back to administration for revisions.
“On this particular issue, clarity to the public is critical component of all of this,” Ireland said.
