Removing flowers from Main Street would make the city's boutique shopping district less attractive to tourists, city council was told Monday evening.

At their weekly meeting, members of council heard from concerned residents that $120,000 in cuts to this year's parks and recreation department budget have resulted in the elimination of some of Main Street's beauty by removing the hanging baskets of flowers.

June Hampton spoke to council as a former member of the Yukon Tourism Industry Association and the Whitehorse Chamber of Commerce.

She said she believes the city should consider having an adopt-a-basket program to save the Main Street flower program.

Since a city-wide flower beautification program was introduced in the mid-'90s, she said, it has gone a long way to beautifying the city and making it attractive to tourists.

'Despite vandalism, this has been successful overall,' Hampton said. 'It's helped to fight the lure of the big box stores.'

She said even though the flower box program run by the chamber will continue, the hanging baskets went a long way to dispelling the city's image as the 'land of ice and snow.'

Hampton said she would also like to see work done on the Alaska Highway rest stops coming into the city as they looked essentially like 'gravel pits.' The return of a citizen tourism committee would enable citizens to have more input into city-made decisions, she added.

Flowers along First Avenue and in the former Motorways trucking yard, when its redevelopment is completed, would also help tourism, Hampton said.

Yukon Gardens owner Lorne Metropolit said he is also very concerned that the beauty of the downtown area would take a hit with the baskets' removal.

Metropolit, who has been supplying the city with flowers for years from his business, said he's willing to pitch in and give the city discounts if it means the program could be saved.

'To me, it's a bright area. I'm not sure if the city is having hard times, but maybe it's time to get some help from the private sector,' said Metropolit.

'I'd be willing to donate every second basket or give them to you for half-price,' he said.

Doug Hnatiuk, the acting manager of the parks department, said the decision to cut the Main Street hanging basket program came down to a question of money.

Hnatiuk said since having his department's budget slashed by $120,000 in the 2007 city budget, some tough decisions had to be made. They included reclassifying the priority of city parks, paring down casual staff and the basket program.

He said the basket program would require a cash injection as the hangers themselves are in disrepair.

'We would require new hangers,' said Hnatiuk.

Programs involving city rest stops, he added, are beyond his department's control as they're under the supervision of the Yukon government.

'We have a minimum amount of input into the rest stops; the rest stops are maintained by YTG.'

Hnatiuk presented a plan to city council to help ease the burdens of city budget cuts but said some things such as the basket program will have to go.

According to city documents, the parks department has presented two options to council as to how to implement the budget cuts Plan A and Plan B.

'The Parks Maintenance Policy has also been prepared to reflect the financial reduction of $120,000 as approved in the budget reduction option program change by council in the 2007 Annual Budget,' the documents say.

'... Plan A illustrates the program change that includes reducing all Priority A parks to Priority B parks, the removal of all annual flowers, hanging baskets on Main Street and a reduction in casual staff.

' ... Plan B was created by administration as an alternate option to consider that minimizes the visual impact of the program change and still is a reduction of the $120,000,' city documents state.

Plan B, Hnatiuk told council, involves the reduction of some Priority A parks to Priority B, some Priority B parks to C and the removal of some of the annual flowers within certain parks.

'(Plan B) also includes the removal of hanging baskets on Main Street and reduces the requirement for some casual staff,' city documents state.

Mayor Bev Buckway said she's pleased to have the option of two plans to choose from and that the removal of the hanging baskets from Main Street is regrettable.

'The budget doesn't have baskets for this year,' said Buckway, a former Main Street business owner.

Coun. Dave Stockdale said he feels the removal of the baskets wasn't anticipated by council when the budget was cut.

'When we decided to cut money like that, we didn't really know all the implications of that.'