Food Bank on the Edge executive director Cris Martin was elated with Ucluelet’s municipal council after they approved $150,000 of funding towards a new facility.
“Thank you so much,” Martin beamed as the May 9 meeting’s attendance applauded council’s unanimous decision.
The funding will come from revenue collected by the district’s Barkley Community Forest, which was launched in 2015 and currently has roughly $3.2 million in the coffer, according to a report presented to council by CAO Duane Lawrence.
Prior to council’s decision, Lawrence noted the Food Bank on the Edge Society had previously presented to council on a new modular building the society has purchased to replace the current facility next to Seaplane Base Field.
“The existing food bank is done. It’s past its useful life and it does need to be replaced,” he said.
A site at Tugwell Fields had previously been allocated for the new food bank and Lawrence said that land is still available, would meet the facility’s needs and has not been allocated for any other use.
“Because it’s parkland, we’re looking at whether or not we need to do an approval of the electors or just a straight lease for the space,” he said, suggesting a $10 per year lease would be appropriate. “It is possible to allocate a portion of the lands, but there’s going to be some background work that staff will need to undertake to ensure that we meet the regulatory requirements.”
He noted the society had originally asked for $500,000, but it was later determined that $150,000 would suffice as the society received a $100,000 grant from AllOne Foundation, has committed $100,000 of its own funding on top of that and is confident it can fundraise $150,000 from supporters as well as neighbouring communities, leaving a $150,000 gap.
The building is approximately $300,000 with the remaining funds needed for infrastructure prior to the building being able to be installed, like water and sewer servicing and foundation work.
Lawrence added that it is rare for council to consider such a funding request outside of its budget deliberations and a risky commitment in part due to the uncertainty around other funding sources and infrastructure costs.
“A request of this nature should be considered in the full context of the budget process and therefore should be deferred to the next budget cycle in 2024,” he wrote. “It is also noteworthy that approving funding for a project that is in progress is not recommended as it can lead to increased occurrences of organizations requesting the District to aid projects that have not been funded adequately.”
His report presented three options to council: defer the decision to 2024’s budget discussions, commit to matching community donations to the food bank or allocate the full $150,000.
Mayor Marilyn McEwen suggested the new food bank building has been a top priority of the past two councils.
Coun. Mark Maftei noted approving the funds could set a precedent for other organizations, suggesting the district is consistently oversubscribed in its Grant in Aid program.
“I don’t even feel the need to preface this by saying that I support the food bank and I support this initiative. I just get the impression that there are a lot of organizations in this community that are constantly fundraising. I deeply empathize with the struggle the food bank has, I know first-hand what that’s like,” he said. “I’m not playing devil’s advocate, I’m not suggesting one thing or another I’m just putting a comment on the record that I wonder to what extent this sets a precedent for council or the community forest fund or for public funds to sort of be the kitty that we dip into. Who draws the line about what deserves the community’s money? What happens if another non-profit comes before the council with a similarly worthwhile project and they request a cash donation?”
McEwen said discussions around allocating community forest money could be scheduled.
“I think it’s because of the length of time that this project has been needed and on the books why it’s risen to the top of the pile,” she said.
Coun. Ian Kennington said he did not believe the funding would set a precedent as food is “the first level of need.”
“We’re talking about starvation. Food and shelter, those were the priorities coming into council. Do people have enough to eat and do people have a roof over their heads and this is one of the two major pieces of why I wanted to be here, so I support this fully,” he said.
Coun. Jennifer Hoar agreed.
“I’m a huge food bank supporter because I have been that person needing the food bank in my lifetime. It really does matter,” she said.
Maftei later clarified that he did not intend his comments to suggest any “doubt or lack of faith” in the society or the initiative.
“I stand by the fact that it’s really hard and I would hate to be in the position to choose what’s worthy and what’s not but I completely agree that it’s hard to think of anything that would be more worthy than this,” he said. “As far as setting a precedent goes I think, if anything maybe this is a good precedent to set to say that if we’re going to spend community resources it’s going to have to be for something that’s benefiting the community to the extent that the food bank does.”
Food Bank on the Edge executive director Cris Martin told the Westerly News following the meeting that she was ecstatic with council’s support.
“It was overwhelming. Everybody spoke. I have never heard the councillors talk so much and be so happy and thrilled and in our corner. It felt so gratifying…They all spoke to wanting us to have that building and getting it done, so we are thrilled,” she said. “To know that they’re behind us in this initiative, I just was so happy, all of us were so happy and they were happy too. It wasn’t begrudgingly…They all were in favour. It’s just amazing.”
She said the roughly 1,550 sq ft manufactured structure being built by Amco Homes is slated to arrive in October and the clock was ticking on being sure the district would support the cost.
“We weren’t sure what was going to happen. We were hopeful,” she said. “We were sort of under the gun…Yes, we have more fundraising work to do and which we intend to do, but this took the pressure off because of this payment that’s going to be looming.”
She added that the town’s former mayor Mayco Noel has been drumming up in-kind support from local contractors to prepare the Tugwell Field site.
“It’s a big project because we have to get that stuff ready so that the building can be put on the foundation,” she said.
Noel had spoken during the meeting and requested council consider expediting the society’s incoming building permit application and put it at the top of the list, rather than have the society wait 60 days for approval.
“The only reason I say that is once we get our engineering and surveying done, a lot of the civil work is going to be in-kind donations from a lot of the contractors in town so, really, kind of giving us the flexibility to work around their schedules,” he said.
Martin said she is confident the society will be able to raise the remaining $150,000.
“Our community, and I say this all the time, is amazing in their support of our initiatives and in this case of our building, we’re very confident,” she said.
“We’re going to reach out to everybody. We’re just going to start doing a blitz and hopefully, fingers crossed, we get our funds generated. We’re definitely very positive and optimistic, especially knowing that our district is going to support us. I think that’s going to go a long way starting the ball rolling with local donations. The fact that the district of Ucluelet is making this commitment is going to set the tone and we’re going to follow on that. We’re just going to try to really blitz it. With enough response, we’ll get our building.”
She said the food bank helped an average of 152 individuals per month in 2022.
“Everybody knows somebody who is or has used the food bank. You may not be aware of it, but trust me you’ve got friends and neighbours reaching out to us, employed people, double income families who cannot bridge the gap,” she said.
Anybody interested in supporting the Food Bank on the Edge Society is encouraged to visit www.foodbankontheedge.ca.
andrew.bailey@westerlynews.ca
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