Clarence-Rockland Mayor Mario Zanth wants the United Counties of Prescott and Russell (UCPR) to speed up the allocation of Cultural Fund dollars, and for changes to be made on how much each municipality is eligible to receive from the fund.
At its final meeting on June 28 before a July break, UCPR council approved a resolution introduced by Zanth requesting the regional government accelerate the process of distributing Cultural Fund allocations to each of the eight municipal mayors.
The 2023 UCPR budget allocated $50,000 to each municipal mayor for specific community projects. There has been continued, inconclusive discussion among the mayors at UCPR council on how, or if a policy on the disbursement of those funds should be arranged.
Both Zanth and East Hawkesbury Mayor Robert Kirby had previously expressed an interest in receiving their allocation this summer for projects in each of their municipalities. For several months, UCPR council has debated exactly how to allocate the funds and ensure financial accountability for how they are used.
The June 28 motion was seconded by The Nation Mayor Francis Brière.
In a brief interview following the meeting, Zanth said he chose to word the motion, so it was open-ended enough to allow any of the mayors to request their Cultural Fund allocation by means of submitting a letter. He noted some of the mayors want to allow their yearly allocation to accumulate for larger projects.
“I don’t think that’s right,” Zanth said.
He noted there is still no formal policy on how the Cultural Fund should be disbursed. He would like to the process redesigned in 2024. Zanth added that Clarence-Rockland and Russell Township—the two most populous municipalities in the UCPR, would still like to see Cultural Fund dollars allocated to each municipality based on a percentage of what each of them contributes to the UCPR annually in taxes.
