BANFF – Banff council’s fact-finding mission to be taught from a comparable tourism sizzling spot on challenges from housing and transit to over-tourism and excessive price of dwelling has been cancelled this 12 months.

Throughout Jan. 10 funds deliberations, Coun. Barb Pelham satisfied most of her council colleagues to postpone the journey that’s at present being deliberate for Jackson, Wyoming for later this spring till 2026.

“The thought is, as a substitute of doing it with a year-and-a-half left in our time period, to do it recent with a council at first of their time period,” mentioned Pelham.

“I do imagine there’s nice worth in it and I do imagine there’s a lot to be taught from our different tourism-based communities, however I feel timing is de facto vital.”

The journey has a funds of $25,000, which is funded via the financial restoration reserve from provincial funds given to the City of Banff popping out of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Administration will attain out to the City of Jackson to let officers know of the postponement.

“We had been engaged on dates for Might, so if there have been to be a deferral, I might simply attain out to the municipality and it may go to 2026 as an choice,” mentioned City Supervisor Kelly Gibson.

The one individual to oppose pushing aside the journey was Coun. Grant Canning, who has been pitching such a visit since 2019.

He mentioned he continues to imagine some of these familiarization journeys to different tourism mountain communities are extremely necessary and efficient.

“The problems we face should not distinctive to Banff, and lots of different communities like Jackson, Wyoming, are dealing with the identical points like housing congestion and parking,” mentioned Canning.

“If we glance past our city boundaries and have conversations with others we will be taught a lot.”

In different funds information, Coun. Hugh Pettigrew’s pitch to freeze council wages and per diem charges on the 2023 price till after the subsequent municipal election in October 2025 was soundly defeated by the remainder of his council colleagues.

General, it will have decreased council wages by $17,698 in 2024 and $23,742 in 2025.

“Yeah, it’s a token, and it’s not an enormous quantity tax-wise, however it’s a sign of intent that we’re doing our half as council to take part within the discount of taxes,” he mentioned.

Mayor Corrie DiManno was fast to voice opposition to the transfer, pointing to a course of that entails a public committee overseeing suggestions for council remuneration.

“It’s by no means people which can be sitting right here which can be figuring out their very own compensation as a result of it’s fairly awkward,” she mentioned.

“I can respect the symbolic nature of this, however I might proceed to assist the suggestions of that public committee and public course of we use to find out council compensation.”

Canning agreed, saying it isn’t good governance for elected officers to vote on their very own salaries.

“The reality is I don’t assume there’s any of us who do that job as a result of we receives a commission some huge cash; we don’t. We do that as a result of we’re public servants and we actually imagine really in our neighborhood,” he mentioned.

“This isn’t some form of windfall of money for us and I feel it’s actually necessary to stay with the method that we’ve.”