The gaggle of boys hunkered around a large Tupperware container full of warm water.
They dipped white T-shirts into the bin, before hoisting up the clothing and enthusiastically wringing it out. Water rushed down their forearms. Puddles formed on the floor. It's Monday afternoon at the Squamish Youth Resource Centre (SYRC) and the teenagers are indulging in some old-fashioned tie-dying.
This time of year has the organizers working behind the scenes of this colourful frenzy biting their nails. The youth centre, along with the Squamish Sustainability Corp., Tourism Squamish, the Squamish Chamber of Commerce and the Squamish Library have presented their budget requests to the District of Squamish.
It's always nerve-wracking, SYRC coordinator Renee Theoret said. Knowing the district is tight on cash and fearing a funding reduction, youth centre officials have asked for $276,334, the same amount they have requested every year since 2007. And they're not alone.
With the exception of the library, all the other organizations followed suit, sticking with last year's requests $109,667.32 for the Squamish Chamber of Commerce to operate the Squamish Visitors Centre, $50,000 for Tourism Squamish and $151,820.53 for the Squamish Sustainability Corp., which runs the Adventure Centre.
Because of the retirement of the former library director and a dip in provincial funding, the Squamish Library requested $878,859.88, a $69,541.88 hike from 2011.
Council, at its Committee of the Whole meeting on March 27, accepted the requests. But lawmakers aren't at the finish line yet. Input was gathered at a recent public open house will be part of final budget deliberations. A new budget is to be adopted on May 1.
The youth centre's stagnant budget has taken its toll. This year, the centre was forced to cancel its snowboarding program, which had run successfully two years. The centre's outings were also cut in half, Theoret said.
Aside from helping hundreds of youth every year, the youth centre has been constantly growing and enhancing services, Theoret said.
