A new date has been set for the MD of Bonnyville's outdoor recreation park open house.
During their regular council meeting on Wednesday, Feb. 13, council decided to host the rescheduled event on Monday, March 4 at the Shaw House from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Representatives from the MD, along with RC Strategies + PERC, the Edmonton-based company conducting the study, will be available for questions and comments from residents regarding the outdoor recreation park.
Check back for the full story.
Waterline construction moving forward
Construction on the regional waterline is underway, although the extremely cold temperatures have slowed progress slightly.
During Wednesday's meeting, acting director of transportation and utilities, Matt Janz, noted negotiations are still happening with landowners.
"It's good the negotiations are still happening. There's no one not wanting to talk, so they're still working on a few negotiations," he said.
Check back for more.
MD accepting applications for Rural Policing Committee
The MD is accepting applications from residents interested in becoming part of their Rural Policing Committee.
They would join Coun. Ed Duchesne and Coun. Dana Swigart, who were both appointed to the committee. The group will be responsible for providing feedback to the Bonnyville RCMP and MD public safety department.
Those interested must reside within the municipality, obtain a criminal record check, and be available to attend monthly meetings. Applications can be submitted to director of public safety Chris Garner via email at [email protected].
Public open house slated for IDP
The MD is hosting an open house to share information with residents about their Intermunicipal Development Plans (IDP) with the Village of Glendon, the Summer Villages of Bonnyville Beach and Pelican Narrows.
The event is set for Tuesday, Feb. 26 at the Bonnyville Seniors' Drop-In Centre. A formal presentation is scheduled to take place at 6:30 p.m., however the open house runs from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Company awarded aquatics centre feasibility study
According to Chris McCord, director of parks and recreation for the MD, the regional aquatics committee have selected the company that will conduct a feasibility study for a new pool facility.
Edmonton-based firm BR2 Architecture was chosen for the study, with a price tag of $35,000. The cost will be shared between the Town and MD of Bonnyville.
Feedback from the public will be included in the study.
Lessard Bridge expected to be completed in the spring
Construction of the ice bridge, required for the repairs to the support beams for Lessard Bridge, wrapped up at the end of January. Work on the bridge itself is expected to start within the next few weeks,
Consultants are predicting the project will be finished by April 15.
Changes to annual shelterbelt program
The shelterbelt program offered through the MD will see some changes this year.
It will be moved to an online format, where information on the variety of trees being offered will be available.
The change was made in hopes of preventing issues that have occurred in the past.
"We were getting a lot of calls, and we weren't able to keep up with the calls matching up with the trees," explained Janz, director of ag and waste services. "There was always a (situation) where somebody didn't receive the order they were promised. That's why we wanted to make sure that it's all online, so that way it will automatically get subtracted off our numbers, so we hopefully won't have that anymore."
There will be 24 different species, with the municipality ordering approximately 8,500 trees this year. Typically the program, which will roll out at the end of February, offers trees to 130 residents.
MD contributes to bantam provincials in Cold Lake
After receiving the request for funding from the Cold Lake Minor Hockey (CLMH) bantam T1 team to assist with hosting provincials, council decided to bring their donation and recognition policy back to the table.
When CLMH submitted a Community Action Grant application to the municipality, council agreed to provide $4,000 to assist with the costs of the tournament running from Thursday, March 14 to Sunday, March 17.
McCord noted the current approach doesn't "reflect the costs that are coming forward with requests" for groups hosting provincials.
CAO Luc Mercier said, "From administration's perspective, we feel that to host provincials for any sport of any level... is probably better economic development at a regional-level promotion than some of the other things that we try to promote."
According to McCord, the City of Cold Lake has decided to contribute $5,000 to assist with the costs of hosting provincials.
CLMH estimates the tournament will bring around 400 people to the area, with roughly 1,000 attending the games.
