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County of Barrhead councillors need to decide where the line is

At its meeting April 18, county councillors voted to financially assist Misty Ridge Ski Hill due to the fact that the resort’s staff and managers haven’t been paid since January.

At its meeting April 18, county councillors voted to financially assist Misty Ridge Ski Hill due to the fact that the resort’s staff and managers haven’t been paid since January.

On the face of it, it is understandable that the council would seek to do so.

While independently operated, as a not-for-profit society, there is a lease agreement between the property owners and the county.

Should the resort go into receivership, the county has a bylaw that states all assets of the society would transfer back to the County of Barrhead and in all likelihood, that would mean they would inherit the bulk of the costs associated with the dissolution as well.

In addition, the loss of Misty Ridge would be a blow to the community itself.

That being said, as our readers know, a variety of clubs have come to council seeking financial assistance and have been turned away.

At times when these organizations, such as the Barrhead Art Club for example, have come forward in dire straits, council has informed them it has been a long-standing policy to not contribute to operational costs.

The decision also flies in the face of the county’s philosophy, which they have referred to repeatedly in their ongoing recreational funding dispute with the town, that they don’t contribute towards operations.

Unfortunately for the county, it is a tough position to be put in.

The decision to fund the society so that it can meet its payroll seems to be a stopgap measure at best and begs the question of the viability of the ski hill.

Yes, it is true, poor weather has been a factor and perhaps with a little bit of luck they wouldn’t be in the financial straits they are in now, but even so, the society’s financial health would still be precarious.

The other question, is whether council is willing to step in to subsidize the hill on an ongoing basis or take over the operation of the facilty itself.

How about all the other groups that they have already denied funding for? Why Misty Ridge over the myriad of other groups that are also in financial dire straights and where is the line?

Whereever the line is, one thing is certain, moving forward, County of Barrhead councillors need to be clear about what the criteria is when requesting funding.

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