Trail and Warfield have submitted financial profiles and now wait to find out if a marriage between the two communities would work and at what cost.
“It was a huge piece of work just getting all this information to (the consultant), but they’re working on a very tight timeline because we want to have this finished hopefully by October,” said city adninistrator David Perehudoff. “So they’re really getting on their horses and getting everything together quite quickly.”
Urban Systems is undertaking the nearly $34,000 Trail-Warfield amalgamation study. After collecting financial data from each community, the consultant will meet with a steering committee by the end of the month.
After financial implications are studied and it’s determined whether an amalgamation is feasible, input from the public and the 12-member steering committee will help decide whether to proceed prior to the end of August.
Phase 2 of the study, costing about $16,000 to complete, will look a refining financial implications, focusing on various governance issues and will include discussing or negotiating amalgamation conditions with the province.
The study will be paid for on a per-capita basis - which means Trail will pick up about 80 per cent of the bill. It’s hoped that the Regional District of Kootenay Boundary will provide $10,000 to help offset the cost for Warfield and Trail.