RR gets slight decrease from DSSAB

By Peggy Revell
Fort Frances Times

The town of Rainy River will be seeing a very slight decrease—$290.01 to be exact—in their share of funding towards the Rainy River District Social Services Administration Board.
This decrease comes following the approval of the RRDSSAB’s 2009 budget at their monthly meeting held Thursday evening in Fort Frances.
“The overall budget increase . . . was 3.01 percent, but the municipal increase was only 1.06 percent,” Finance manager Leanne Eluik told the board when presenting the draft budget.
“And that is mainly due to the increase in the unincorporated assessment, and the province is picking up a bigger share this year,” she explained.
In 2008, Rainy River’s levy was $ 115,113.59, but for 2009 it will decrease to $114,823.58. Atikokan and Chapple were the only other municipalities to see a decrease. Meanwhile, unincorporated areas saw the biggest increase at $441,999.18.
A total budget of $19,851,785 for 2009 was approved by the board.
A three percent salary increase in the 2008-11 staff agreement, funding for mandatory government training for Ontario Works staff, increasing administrative costs for child care, capital funds for social housing, and the required 50/50 matching of provincial funds for land ambulance were cited by Eluik as the main reasons behind the overall budget increase.
At this meeting, the board also approved a motion to use reserve funds for renovations to the Rainy River Land Ambulance Base.
“The ambulance base in Rainy River is currently a one bay garage,” noted Township of Morley Reeve, Gary Gamsby, who also chairs of the land ambulance committee. This current situation means that one of the vehicles remains outside, he said.
“When the Ministry people came in to do a review, they identified that as a areas of concern, that that second car should be inside, so it’s ready to go in case of break down or an emergency, not just in Rainy River but if we need it in one of the other bases too,” he explained.