The City of Moose Jaw will provide financial support to this year’s Saskatchewan Air Show, even though the request for assistance came after the city’s budget had been completed.
During city council’s May 13 regular meeting, council voted 6-1 to provide the air show with $20,000 from a municipal contingency fund, along with three buses for transportation and fire trucks for protection as part of in-kind contributions.
Coun. Dawn Luhning was opposed.
The air show’s organizing committee had requested a contribution of $45,000, while its request for in-kind contributions — such as policing, firefighting, busing, electrical infrastructure, installation of fencing, and traffic barriers — would have cost $12,200.
15 Wing Moose Jaw is hosting the air show on July 6 and 7. Prior to 2004, when the event was cancelled, the air show was hosted every two years and attracted between 20,000 to 25,000 visitors.
The air show focuses on:
- Celebrating the rich history between the municipality and the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF)
- Recognizing 78 years of RCAF training excellence in the province
- Showcasing the RCAF capabilities and professionalism
According to a letter from the air base to city council, air show organizers expect to incur expenses of $515,364 and see revenues of $552,600. This would produce net earnings of $37,236.
Col. Denis O’Reilly, wing commander of 15 Wing Moose Jaw and chairman of the air show, and Dave Lyons, corporate services co-ordinator, gave a brief presentation to council.
“The partnership (between Moose Jaw and the air base) continues to be outstanding. It is one of the best across the RCAF in terms of relationships with bases and communities,” O’Reilly said.
The show so far is already a tremendous success, he continued. More than 8,000 tickets have been sold, including to visitors from Ireland, the Virgin Islands and throughout North America.
“We are putting Moose Jaw on the map with this,” continued O’Reilly. “We are tremendously proud of what we’ve done. The support has been unanimous across the province … . The air show is going to go ahead and it’s going to be a great time.”
Mayor Fraser Tolmie agreed that both organizations have a strong relationship. He pointed out that O’Reilly is originally from Moose Jaw, so he “returned to his old stomping grounds” a few years ago to become base commander.
Council discussed this issue in-camera a few weeks ago, said Coun. Brian Swanson. He indicated then that it would be difficult to provide funding since the request came after budget deliberations.
Swanson introduced the motion to provide $20,000 from a municipal contingency fund. He acknowledged it was less than requested, but ensures council stays within budget. He didn’t think having a fire truck on site made sense since the fire department and air base already have a contract.
A similar request for support is likely forward to the board of police commissioners, said Tolmie. That would top up the municipality’s contribution and would ensure council also stays within budget.
“I wish we could have given you more, had we known, but our budget has been put to bed,” said Coun. Crystal Froese. “This is an extraordinary event. I’m excited to have this back.”
Luhning looked less favourably on the financial contribution.
“I think $20,000 is a bit generous at this point, only because we’re after budget,” she said. “I wish it had come sooner.”
The next regular council meeting is May 27.
