St. Marys to replace annual flowers with perennials in effort to reduce beautification budget

By Galen Simmons, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Following the St. Marys Business Improvement Area’s (BIA) recent decision to eliminate its hanging-basket program and purchase self-watering planters, St. Marys council has decided to replace nine of the town’s annual flowerbeds with perennial flowers to further reduce the town’s beautification costs.

Building on the recent reduction in service approved by the BIA and coupled with the town’s existing contract with St. Marys Landscaping nearing the end of its term in 2025, town staff began reviewing potential additional cost savings. The beautification budget was highlighted in 2018 by facilities staff during the efficiency service-level review, which projected costs of approximately $60,000 for 2019.

Current costs for 2024 have now reached an estimated $105,000 (after the BIA’s annual $4,500 contribution), which is a direct cost to the municipal tax levy. Annual flower beds represent most of the budget at $78,000 and perennial beds constitute $31,000. This represents an annual overall cost increase of 77 per cent or 19 per cent yearly since 2019 for a relatively consistent service level.

“We’re entering our last year of the contract (with St. Marys Landscaping),” director of public works Jed Kelly told councillors. “There’s one more year for 2025. So, kind of jumping from what the BIA started with the cost reduction (from the elimination of) the hanging baskets … we started doing a cost analysis on maybe doing a bit of a service reduction and changing about nine of the beds to perennial beds.

“ … In a nutshell, what we’re looking to do is focus our annual (flower bed) program in the downtown and places of Remembrance, so the urns would remain (planted with annual flowers), the cenotaph would remain, the cemetery service level would remain. Generally, we’re focusing on changing annual beds around signage, town signs, that sort of thing to perennial beds.”

In contrast to annual beds, perennial flower beds do not require new plantings and frequent watering, which in turn makes them significantly cheaper to maintain, though they do require annual mulch top-ups and periodic weeding. As such, with reduced input requirements, the perennial beds have been more cost-effective to maintain with less fluctuation in price.

Kelly told councillors that St. Marys Landscaping has agreed to begin converting those nine annual beds to perennial beds in the Spring of 2025. Initial quotes for the bed conversions indicate that, despite recent cost increases, they could be funded through existing operational budgets. Town staff anticipate cost reductions of approximately $47,000 starting in 2026, however the draft 2025 public works operational budget includes $105,000 to maintain the existing service level. If approved, Kelly said in his report, beautification costs could be reduced to roughly $60,000 beginning in 2026.

“It’s shocking when you see the numbers year over year and where we end up, so I fully support this report and I think it’s important that we sometimes take a step back and say, ‘What are we doing and how can we reduce some costs,’ ” Coun. Dave Lucas said.

The amended beautification program, according to Kelly’s report to council, would include some annual beds, perennial-bed maintenance and contract watering. Additionally, a review of the watering programs will be conducted following the BIA’s selection of self-watering planters. Kelly said it is possible the watering program could be brought in-house using seasonal staff, though this will be considered during the 2026 beautification-tender process.