The city's 2010 annual report on everything from the strategic sustainability plan to summaries of city projects and complete audited financial statements is available at city hall and on the website, www.rossland.ca.
Coun. Laurie Charlton called the report "thorough," and Coun. Kathy Wallace recommended it to the community as "very readable."
The report also includes Ami Haworth's final report for Neighbourhoods of Learning, and a "greenhouse gas reduction implementation plan."
For the city, highlights include a revamped website and streaming video of council meetings.
Council met 34 times last year, of which 21 were regular meetings, in addition to 9 public hearings and seven community input sessions.Council also reviewed, rewrote, or deleted 99 policies in the city's policy manual and adopted 19 bylaws, of which 10 were for fees and taxes and five were for zoning amendments. One bylaw amended the Official Community Plan to meet greenhouse gas reduction targets set by Bill 27.
The city's progress toward these targets is laid out in tables and pie charts in the report, with facts on several key energy sinks from street lights to city vehicles.
CAO Victor Kumar said at council that we won't know until next year how much energy (and greenhouse gases) will have been saved by upgrades to the arena in 2010.
Major efficiency upgrades in the arena's HVAC and mechanical systems cost $160,772 but should pay themselves back in energy savings over the coming years.
The report shows that the total $1 million in arena upgrades were funded to the tune of $488,220 by a WEDI grant, $279,496 from the roof reserve fund, and short-term borrowing of $252,164.
The roof replacement was finished far under budget, for $621,588, but crews found problems during renovations that needed repair. Leaky urinals and rotten wood forced a shower and washroom fix of $47,384, fire and safety upgrades tacked on another $57,814, and structural, electrical, and lighting upgrades to the curling rink amounted to another $115,891.
In 2010, the city secured a $20,000 UBCM no-match grant to fund Rossland's first community garden, in partnership with Rossland REAL Food, at the north end of Jubilee Park, and the city also assisted them with the establishment of the weekly farmer's market.
Two new trails from the city's Active Transportation Plan (ATP) were built: A one kilometre link from downtown to the museum, and a one kilometre link from Washington to Redstone along Trail Creek. Both were completed at 50 per cent of the cost estimated in the ATP.
The 15 full-time public works employees were very busy across the board, from patching potholes and retaining wall repairs, to service upgrades and water meter conversions.
Of the city's 1,676 water services, 525 were metered in 2010, but all buildings must be metered by Dec. 31, 2011.
The old underground fuel tanks at the city yard were removed and new aboveground tanks were installed. The mixing system fort he Red Mountain reservoir was purchased and will be installed in 2011.
The report also includes a summary of the many programs run by Rossland Recreation, and a summary of the city's numerous ongoing projects, as they stood at the end of 2010.
The report ends with audited financial statements — income, expenditures, and debts — including a a list of some $456,722 in contributions to community societies, a breakdown of taxation, and the payments made to various service providers, from utilities to contractors, in 2010.