Pearl Lorentzen
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Lakeside Leader

Agricultural disaster

Council approved a news release on the federal and provincial support the M.D. received in response to the local state of agricultural disaster the M.D. declared on September 2. This was because of drought and grasshoppers.

Producers in the M.D. are now eligible for the livestock tax deferral program, low yield allowance adjustment, enhanced agristability compensation, and advanced payments program.

Deputy Reeve Lana McCann asked if people who need the supports would know who to call.

“Producers who will use this will know what to do,” said Councillor Sandra Melzer.

CAO Barry Kolenosky said the M.D. will include the contact information for each program in the news release.

Signing authority

Administration asked council to add Kristen Schalin, director of finance, to the list of the signing authority for the M.D.

Council passed a McCann motion to add her to the list.

Nine Mile Recreation Society

Representatives from the Nine Mile Recreation Society and Alberta Forestry and Parks asked council to consider becoming the trail manager for the Nine Mile Recreation Area, north of Widewater. See article on Page 10.

New council orientation

Nicky van Deventer, Human Resources director, reported on new council orientation. This will be October 27 to 29, starting at 9 a.m. each day.

“That’s three pretty full days,” she said.

McCann asked if the training included the training required by the Government of Alberta.

“She’ll (the trainer will) be doing all of that,” said van Deventer.

Council passed a Brad Pearson motion to accept the report as information.

Mistue water-treatment plant repairs

Jeremy Dumaresque, Utilities manager, reported on the completed emergency repairs on the Mitsue water-treatment plant.

On May 31 at 2 p.m., the plant stopped working, said Dumaresque. Council approved money to fix it in June. In the process of fixing it, a very old valve broke. This valve has been bypassed and the plant is up and running. The valve isn’t in stock and is being built by the company, to be installed later. Other than that, everything is done.

“We’re at full capacity since last week,” he added.

“It will be under budget,” said Kolenosky.

The budget was $260,000. So far, it has cost $125,000.

Pearson asked if it was the raw or filtered pond.

The filtered one was the answer.

Pearson asked if the damage was caused by the ponds freezing over.

No, said Dumaresque, the ponds freezing has no effect on the water plant. The break was in the berm. There is a 90 degree turn, which wasn’t supported. The pipes moved and came uncoupled. There was a space between the pipes, water was flowing through the gap and pushing dirt into the pipe, which clogged and shut down the plant. The new pipe is supported.

“Stuff should never move in there ever again,” added Dumaresque.

Finance

Council looked over the August financial statements.

Pearson asked why the investment income was so much higher than the budget.

The budget was very conservative, said Kolenosky, as it is hard to calculated.

Pearson asked why the expenses were at 47.05 per cent instead of 66 per cent.

The answer was because not all invoices have been received for work done during construction season.

Pearson asked why money hadn’t been moved from reserves as was planned.

That money was to pay for projects that were grant dependent, said Kolenosky. The M.D. didn’t receive the grants, so didn’t do the project. Therefore the money stays invested and earning interest.

Community Futures Tawatinaw Region

Community Futures has added an online portal to apply for grants, said Melzer.
Pearson asked Melzer to find out how much money community futures has to write off each year.

Airport

The Slave Lake Airport Services Commission held a fly-in event in the summer.
It was well attended, said Councillor Norm Seatter.
Work is progressing on protecting the bank at the end of the airstrip from erosion, said Pearson.

Peace Library Systems

“Nothing really earth shattering over there,” said Pearson.

Slave Lake and District Chamber of Commerce

Riverboat Daze was a success, said McCann.

The Business Gala will be in February, with Community Futures Lesser Slave Lake taking the lead.

The Chamber and Kinettes are organizing a small business Christmas party. For a fee, employers book as many spaces as they need, and the organizers provide the food and entertainment.

Lesser Slave Lake Regional Housing Authority

“Our rents are a little bit low,” said Pearson, and the housing authority board is looking into a graduated way to increase it.

The LSLRHA has a $1 million deficit, added Pearson. The deficit is paid for with requisitions from LSR, Town of Slave Lake, and M.D. of Opportunity. These requisitions are the result of a ministerial order.

Reeve Murray Kerik asked if Opportunity having built its own seniors facility changes this.

So far, they are still part of the ministerial order, said Pearson, which means the money still comes to LSLRHA.

Homeland Housing

The eastern part of the M.D. falls with Homeland Housing. Melzer sits on that board.
One of the facilities charges $2,466 per month with food, she said. “The food and expenses are going up.”

Inter-Municipal Committee

A new fire service agreement was endorsed, said McCann. This includes ordering a new ladder truck, to be jointly owned. At the moment, the town and M.D. each own one, and neither is used very often. The main place it is needed is at the mills. Once the new one arrives, the town and M.D. will sell the old ones.

Planning and Development

Before the new land-use bylaw (LUB) came into effect, the Municipal Planning Commission approved 14 sea-cans on an industrial property. The new LUB limits the number to 10.

Lesser Slave Lake Regional Tourism

The society has finalized the new bylaws, said Kerik.

Wildfire Legacy Centre

The Legacy Centre will have the “normal deficit or awfully close,” said Kerik.

Alberta North Central Alliance

ANCA had a presentation on a new hemp processing plant in the M.D. of Smoky River.
“It’s tough to handle,” said Kerik, but there is no waste, as every part of the plant can be used. It also, needs a lot of sunlight and water.

It could compete with canola as a cash crop, said Seatter.

Scott Sinclair, MLA for Lesser Slave Lake, attended the ANCA meeting. He said he’d look into the construction delay at Wilson Creek on Hwy. 2, east of Mitsue.

Tri-Council Health

People are working to try to bring chemotherapy to the area, possibly a few days in Slave Lake and a few in High Prairie, said McCann. The Slave Lake hospital is down three doctors and six nurse practitioners. There have been no surgeries in the Slave Lake operating room for two years. Babies are not being delivered at any hospital in the region. For babies to be delivered in Slave Lake, the hospital needs to hire an anesthesiologist. The hospital phones will cost $100,000 to replace, so keep calling back if you don’t get through.

Widewater garbage bins

The M.D. received a letter from a southshore resident asking the M.D. to make a bylaw banning the use of large garbage bins. People were renting dumpsters for their homes and bears were getting in.

Kerik suggested the M.D. send a notice to remind people to close the lid.

Pearson suggested the M.D. ask the company to find a way to bear proof them.

EMT map

Local EMTs had asked Seatter to see if the M.D. could provide maps that include the municipal addresses. Online maps don’t always recognize the addresses, so the EMTs sometimes have trouble finding people.

The fire service uses a map that includes the addresses, the consensus was that the fire services figure out a way to share these maps with EMS.

Climate change meeting

Council passed a motion to allow Seatter to attend a climate change meeting at the University of Alberta.

Smith Bridge

The M.D. has a meeting with provincial ministers for November 5 at 4:30 p.m. at the legislature to discuss replacing the Smith Bridge.

Closed session

Council went into closed session at the end of the closed session discussed the Smith waterline, budget meeting, and personnel.

Committee of the whole

Shortly after 2:30 p.m. council went into the committee of the whole meeting. They discussed some bylaws and policies, which they put over to the next regular meeting. Council also talked about the Rural Municipalities Association (RMA) fall convention, where they plan to meet with RCMP K Division and some provincial ministers.