Asset management is a joint effort in Manitou Lake

Background

The Rural Municipality of Manitou Lake in Saskatchewan lies south of Lloydminster, right up against the Alberta border. It was incorporated in 1910 and just over 500 people live in its vast area of 840 square kilometres. Key industries are agriculture and heavy oil extraction, and many of its 360 kilometres of developed roads are used to truck oil to processing.

Receiving a Municipal Asset Management Program (MAMP) grant allowed Manitou Lake to further develop its asset management plans, particularly for roads and bridges, and provide training for Council and staff.

“MAMP funding allowed Council and staff to work together to improve our asset management program, particularly for risk and levels of service registers. This is helping us make crucial decisions about infrastructure assets during the economic downturn.”

– Joanne Loy, CAO

From 2017 to 2022, MAMP funded 226 asset management grants for municipal projects across Saskatchewan, and provided training and education through MAMP-funded partners to more than 400 municipalities in the province.

Highlights

• Asset management training helps Council and staff “speak the same asset management language” and develop a common understanding of their asset management goals.
• Council's willingness to match the MAMP investment and take the training was instrumental to the successful outcomes.

The challenge

When municipal leaders recognize the need for change, whether in reaction to economic, regulatory or social pressures or as a proactive measure to better serve residents, it sets a positive direction that can lead to lasting improvement. Manitou Lake developed its asset management systems in part due to regulatory requirements for tangible capital assets, and as a response to a simple question: “How can we make all the information we have more useful, beyond just creating financial statements?”

Since 2016, Council has also been facing difficult service delivery decisions about what is most important and what can wait, due to a nearly 30 percent decrease in tax revenues caused by demographic and economic shifts.

The approach

With only four full-time staff, the chief administrative officer (CAO) and the foreman are key champions for asset management. Over the years, staff have taken a variety of training, including from the Institute of Public Works Engineering Australasia (IPWEA) and FCM partners such as NAMS Canada, Asset Management Saskatchewan (AMSK) and the Canadian Network of Asset Managers. In 2016, the CAO obtained her Professional Certificate in Asset Management Planning from NAMS Canada.

Manitou Lake also worked with Dr. Gordon Sparks from the University of Saskatchewan (who wanted to start a community of practice that later became AMSK) to develop an asset management plan for 56 kilometres of heavy haul roads, feeling that shrinking the planning to a small chunk would make the process easier to manage. Later, through the MAMP grant, Dorian Wandzura of LadderUp Consulting Ltd provided asset management training for Council.

The barriers

Just finding time was difficult, and asset management planning sometimes tended to get pushed aside as other duties and responsibilities took priority. Knowing the value it could bring and the ultimate goals helped staff and Council stay on course.

There were issues getting — and keeping — everyone on the same page, especially with Council turnover after bi-annual elections. However, focusing on regular training and discussion helped maintain continuity and shared understanding.

At times, staff lacked confidence about whether they were doing asset management “right,” and were uncertain about the best way to create the plans and adapt the data. Having access to outside expertise to pull the various threads together was a benefit, as were FCM resources such as the Asset Management Readiness Scale, the communication tool Starting the asset management conversation in your municipality, the guide How to develop an asset management policy and strategy, and the videos and webinars.

The results

Manitou Lake now has a strategic asset management plan and roadmap, along with asset management plans for heavy haul/high volume roads, paved roads, gravel roads and bridges. A plan for equipment and buildings is underway.

Staff developed a condition rating scale and completed condition rating on all roads. Council is aware of the scale and sees it as a valuable tool.

Council has better information upon which to base service delivery decisions, and a clear understanding of the associated risks and costs that come with changes to levels of service. It is also working to establish and follow a structured decision-making process to minimize risk and improve service to residents.

Staff use the asset management roadmap to regularly engage Council in decisions about levels of service and risk, and adjust the levels based on needs and strategic priorities. These activities strengthen communication to ratepayers about current levels of service, the cost to maintain those levels and the consequences when the levels change.

Lessons learned

Successful asset management planning requires a true partnership that includes regular conversations between staff and Council. Engaging Council as active participants not only in the learning process but also in the development of service levels created a sense of confidence in and commitment to the outcome. Everyone understands that although asset management planning can be challenging, there are also risks and consequences to not doing it.

While asset management planning can guide and focus robust discussion, it does not provide immediate answers. Effort is still required to understand the information, know how to apply it and account for changing conditions and community needs.

Asset management is a future-oriented process that shows due diligence and helps manage change. Rather than a once-and-done administrative or financial exercise that can be “finished,” it is an ongoing process to improve decision-making.

Next steps

Manitou Lake continues to focus on keeping Council, and especially new councillors, involved. This helps ensure they see the value of asset management and understand the need to devote staff time to it.

The municipality will be considering how climate change will affect asset performance.

Succession planning is also on the radar, to capture knowledge, transfer information and ensure good asset management practices continue even through staff and Council turnover.  

Contact

Joanne Loy
Chief Administrative Officer
RM of Manitou Lake, Saskatchewan