Is $81,000 reasonable to paint a rainbow crosswalk? Huntsville council doesn't think so.
At the May 23 council meeting, council requested a report detailing the costs of installing a crosswalk in rainbow colours on Main Street.
Tarmo Uukkivi, director of Operations and Protective Services, presented the report to council on July 26. The document presents the approximate prices for the crosswalk installation. Despite giving more details, staff had issues with nailing down the exact costs.
"In terms of the costing, this presented a challenge for staff," Uukkivi said in the meeting. "We approached a couple of companies that we typically used for line painting a lot in town and (they) refused to provide even general quotes on the work. That left us looking at what we could come up with as a general estimate for the cost."
Estimates could be as high as $81,000 without considering maintenance. However, this amount may be lower with more accurate calculations.
"A lot of towns have done this for a lot cheaper. But those aren't real numbers to us because we don't have a quote in our hands," Coun. Scott Morrison said. "I'm proposing a substitute motion because we don't have enough information for the council to make an educated decision right now."
The initiative is causing excitement among councillors.
"What makes this motion stand out is that this is more than just a council wanting to do something," Mayor Nancy Alcock said in the meeting. "In fact, a whole lot of people in our community are incredibly supportive of getting behind an initiative like this. It's a challenge to work with many people in our community. And I love this motion."
The council unanimously approved a motion substitute that allows the final decision to be postponed until more accurate data is available and costs are more realistic.
"I'm really excited that this bill is something that we can still look at and make our community inclusive because I was very disappointed about the amount of money that would have been spent on a crosswalk," Coun. Renwick said. "I certainly do not support $81,000 on paint. So, this will be great to look at and return with in the future."
Julian Orlando Chaves is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter who works out of the Huntsville Forester. The Local Journalism Initiative is funded by the Government of Canada.
