Running out of sand one of many budget headaches for City of Iqaluit

The City of Iqaluit is running out of sand used to coat its slippery roads and needs to buy $50,000 more to last it through the end of the year, councillors heard Tuesday night.

Rather than salt, the city uses sand.

But after a spring that brought blizzard after blizzard and a higher than average snowfall, the city ran out.

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City workers have been collecting sand from the Road to Nowhere, thinking it would carry them until the end of the year.

The city is now realizing the quality isn't good enough.

"We don't want people getting into accidents," John Mabberi-Mudonyi, Iqaluit's senior director of corporate services, told council.

"They need proper gravel."

The added expense is one of many the city went over budget on in 2016.

Thousands over budget

It spent an additional $75,000 fixing its aging fleet of vehicles, $60,000 more paying consultants to help renew its expired water licence and another $20,000 towards a planning development review.

Then there was the more than quarter-of-a-million dollar oversight on a utilidor heating bill .

"I don't really understand," said Coun.Joanasie Akumalik.

"Suddenly we need $275,000 when an issue like utilidor piped water is [overlooked]?"

"During the budgeting process, public works didn't see it," replied Mabberi-Mudonyi. "I missed it.

"We have to pay for it. So they're coming back to say, 'Well, we missed this, can you please approve it?' And at the end of the day that's what it is. It was an unfortunate thing. It shouldn't happenbut it did."

Some of the budget additions were offset by some decreases to the 2016 budget.

Over $200,000 can be stricken from Iqaluit'sland fund, the majority taken off from money budgeted towards updating the city's general plan and zoning bylaw.

$16,000 could be sliced from both ambulance and fire services, money that was set aside for casual workers who were never hired. Another $5,500 could be dropped for training for bylaw officers, a cost that had already been budgeted for, according to Mabberi-Mudonyi.

All in, the city needs to come up with another $200,000.

"I'd like to know what the implications of this is," said Counc.Megan Pizzo-Lyall before making a motion to defer making a decision on the amended budgetuntil the numbers could be properly presented.

The budget amendments will be back on the city's agenda at its next council meeting.