It’ll only cost a loonie or toonie to drop in for a swim, skate or workout at a Coquitlam recreation centre next year.
This month, council extended the city’s single admission rates as part of its COVID-19 relief package for residents: $1 for kids and $2 for adults.
The move is expected to cost the municipality about $3.2 million in 2021; however, that lost revenue will be offset, in part, by the city’s $5-million Community Support and Recovery Program (CSRP).
Still, fees and charges will go up next year in other departments after council OK’d the final bylaw reading on Dec. 14:
• Legal services: increase to development document reviews, and board of variance application rates;
• Planning and development: second of third-year rise in subdivision and rezoning application rates, and a new master development plan rezoning levy (as per the newly approved master development plan rezoning policy);
• Engineering and public works: rate changes for modification of traffic signals, drainage utility service, frontage works program service, sanitary utility service, transportation infrastructure service and water utility service.
The fee structure changes in the planning department will likely collect $90,000 more for the city, wrote Michelle Hunt, Coquitlam’s general manager of finance, lands and police, in her Nov. 30 report to council.
Besides the reduced drop-in activity fees, the CSRP has offered grants to non-profits to replace the Spirit grant program, which was funded by the casino (not operational for 2020), and a hot meal delivery/pick-up program for seniors who are pavilion members. As well, as of Dec. 15, the city is allowing free on-street parking in City Centre to encourage local shopping.
