Go to DSSAB, Social Planning Council told

The North Bay and Area Social Planning Council will receive its budget request, but not through city council, executive director Lynn Ann Lauriault was told at a public budget session Tuesday night.

Lauriault appeared at the meeting to address a core funding request of $20,000 submitted in December.

Passing on a message from chairman Bruce Knox, Lauriault said the SPC comes to council annually asking to be put into the city budget as a line item, and that it was time for that to happen again this year.

“We ask for very little money, not $2 million or even $200,000 but $20,000,” Lauriault said, “and you as governors of our city receive an awful lot of progress in return.”

Significant leveraging power
For $20,000 annually in core funding, Lauriault said, the city receives well over $200,000 in economic development activity “which is fully documented and shared with you quarterly. That’s significant leveraging power.”

Lauriault then told council the SPC finds “solutions to problems,” having started the Volunteer Centre of the Blue Sky Region, the Community Housing Action Group, the Good Food Box program as well as developing a strategy to combat child poverty in North Bay.

But Coun. Maureen Boldt reminded Lauriault that she had been told by council in the past to approach the Nipissing District Social Services Administration Board for funds rather than the city.

“North Bay is the major contributor to DSSAB so it would almost be like getting money from the city,” Boldt said.

Funding will be there
Coun. Mac Bain, who sits on the DSSAB board, also told Lauriault to approach DSSAB.

“The funding will be there and I will make a motion for it at our next DSSAB meeting,” Bain said.

Lauriault said the most important thing was to get the $20,000 core funding, but left suggesting the SPC should be eligible for $40,000: $20,000 from the city and $20,000 from DSSAB.