Wednesday, March 31, 2021

IN THE NEWS


By Marianne Cole

Municipal Development Plan Review 

The MDP review process has been temporarily paused. We will keep you posted with any further news as it becomes available.

Regional Governance 

The first efforts on public engagement regarding town/county/village amalgamation have now been completed. A virtual meeting was held on February 17th and then people had until March 10th to submit their survey responses on the matter. As the consultants had done a very poor job of putting out information on the matter, the CCTA put together a wrap around the March 3rd issue of the Western Star. It outlined the potential impacts of joining the local municipalities under one jurisdiction. We heard very positive comments about this effort to give county residents more valuable information on such an important issue.

66 surveys were handed in to the county office and it is unknown how many were handed in to the town and village, or how many were submitted on line. A report is now being prepared by the consultants and we hope to hear those results in April.

Up-Coming Tax Rate 

Significant discussion took place at the March 17th CCTA meeting on the up-coming tax rate. As a result, a motion was passed that we write a letter to County Council asking for a reduction in the tax rate, as well as a potential rebate on taxes for businesses in the county. We are well aware of the reduced income that the county currently receives due to the down-turn in the oil industry, but county residents and businesses are also being impacted financially by the economy and Covid. Reduced taxes could potentially result in a community benefit.

We also requested council direct administration to practise as much fiscal restraint/efficiency as possible.

Another concern expressed at the meeting was related to our current reserves. There is a worry that the province will look at our significant reserves (current overall total of $106, 778, 399) and subsequently reduce their normal financial support.

Following our meeting I did some research to compare our finances with those of two of our neighboring jurisdictions. The chart below shows some of the more interesting highlights. Compared to others, we can perhaps be thankful for the prudent operation of our council and administration. We trust that it will continue with the current budget and subsequent tax rate.

INTERESTING FINANCIAL COMPARISONS

Category                     Neighbor 1                          Clearwater County                  Neighbor 2

1. 2019 Revenue         $29, 527, 880                     $56, 751,795                            $62, 342, 757

2. 2019 Expenses        $31, 992, 315                     $52, 163, 359                           $79, 140, 676

3. Surplus/Deficit        $2, 464, 435                       $4, 588, 436                             $16, 797, 919


4. Accumulated

surplus/reserves           $43, 310, 314                    $106, 778, 399                         $52, 380, 944

5. Reeve/mayor

remuneration &

benefits total                $97, 416                            $63, 640                                   $102, 739


6. Average of

councillor

remuneration/

benefits                       $57, 675                             $52, 182                                   $67, 348


Population 

comparisons:              7, 770                                  11, 900                                     19, 500


Note: The 2020 figures are not yet available. The audited financial statements are usually presented the end of April/beginning of May.

Change of Meeting Date 

Due to the up-coming Blue Mountain Power Corp.’s annual meeting being set for the same date as our regular monthly meeting, we are moving or next meeting to one week earlier. It will be held on Wednesday, April 14, 2021 at 7:30PM at the Arbutus Community Hall. Everyone is welcome and social distancing is in effect.

UP-COMING EVENTS:

Regular monthly meetings: Wednesday, April 14, 2021; Wednesday, May 19, 2021 7:30PM, Arbutus Community Hall

Easter Smiles:

How do you catch a unique Easter Bunny? Unique up on it.

Why shouldn’t you tell an Easter egg a joke? Because it might crack up.

Why did the Easter egg hide? He was a little chicken.

Monday, March 1, 2021

IN THE NEWS

By Marianne Cole

REGIONAL GOVERNANCE STUDY 

This issue of our CCTA newsletter will focus on one main topic---the Regional Governance Study currently underway. In short, this is a preliminary investigation into the various possibilities of government for the County, the Town of Rocky, and the Village of Caroline.

History

Discussion on this issue began a couple of years ago when potential “amalgamation” was first proposed by the town. The three councils each discussed the matter and it seemed that the most favorable/beneficial option for the county was to just investigate joining the County and the Village of Caroline. It was felt that taking one small step first and evaluating those results before proceeding with a larger step would be the wisest choice. This suggestion was communicated to both the Town and Village. The Village was supportive; the Town not. The County and Village subsequently applied for an Alberta Community Partnership Grant to support costs of investigating just the dual amalgamation. Initially the grant was refused but was later awarded for a reduced amount.

In the meantime, the Town submitted an application under the same program with the intent of doing a “regional” study, even though both the County and the Village had indicated they did not support the idea. Their application was successful and the investigation process has now begun with a regional focus.

Process 

A Steering Committee to oversee the process was established with the Mayors of the town and village, the County Reeve, Councillors from all three jurisdictions, and the CAO’s from each municipality. Applications were opened up for consultants to do the information gathering and report preparation. As a result Nichols Applied Management along with ISL Engineering and Land Services have been hired. They have released the following timeline and steps:

January: Review the current situation and conduct interviews with the respective councils and administration.

February: Public engagement that would include providing online information, doing a virtual (online) open house meeting, and conducting a survey.

March-May: Develop options and recommendations based on the background review and the public engagement feedback. Submit a report to the Steering Committee.

May: Hopefully hold in-person open houses, virtual open house, and complete another survey. A summary of the feedback would then be shared with the Steering Committee.

Following the information gathering and presentation to the Steering Committee it is up to the three councils to make further decisions.

Possibilities 

While there are seven possibilities listed in the “Regional Governance Study” information there are in reality 5 options:

1. Status Quo Everything remains the same with collaborative regional partnerships.

2. Single Municipal District The three municipalities (County, village, and town) would amalgamate into one single Municipal District.

3. Dissolution of the Village Caroline would give up its status as a village to become a hamlet in Clearwater County (like Leslieville or Condor). This would leave the County and the town as separate entities.

4. Amalgamation of County and Village This would be similar to the above option but electoral divisions in the County would be adjusted to give Caroline its own representation on County Council.

5. Amalgamation of the Town and County The town of Rocky and Clearwater County would be joined into a single Municipal District. An electoral system would need to be developed to elect one council. Staff would be consolidated into a single administration. Caroline would maintain its status as a village.

COMMENT 

This is a very crucial issue that commands significantly more information be given to the public in methods other than the over-dependence on social media/virtual technology. To rely so heavily on this method of public engagement shows, again, a definite lack of understanding of/respect for, the rural community and its issues with connectivity and variety of technology skill set.

All residents of each one of the 3 municipalities involved deserve equal opportunity to gather information and provide input. This can only be done effectively if information has been provided in a number of ways that would address any possible restrictions. While open, in-person meetings are viewed as most desired, other effective methods could include individual information mail outs that would include a survey, as well as a potential wrap around the most widely circulated newspaper in our area, the Western Star.

Many of us have witnessed the recent distinct friction between the Town and County with a perceived unwillingness by the Town for equal “give and take”. It was earlier evident in the frustrating discussions between the Town and the Rodeo Board re the grandstand grant/ North Saskatchewan River Park lease. Recently, other conflicting issues (such as waste disposal and airport matters) have come forward. Such discord has, historically, not been a problem between the Town and County. In spite of these problems, the County has remained committed to fulfilling its community support financially. In 2019 this amounted to $7,808,079. The 2020 total has yet to be audited/published.

With an election on the horizon perhaps there is a possibility that we could return to more congenial, cooperative negotiations on matters of joint concern. As such we should not now be forced into a situation that could potentially have very serious repercussions to, above all, our County finances.

LET’S PUT ANY THOUGHTS OF AMALGAMATION ON HOLD AND SEE WHAT THE FUTURE BRINGS. IN THE MEANTIME, PLEASE COMPLETE THAT ATTACHED SURVEY… AND EVEN PHOTOCOPY IT AND PASS IT ON TO YOUR FRIENDS. 

The deadline for submission has been extended to March 10, 2021.

Coming Events: 

Wednesday, March 17, 2021, 7:30PM, Arbutus Community Hall, Regular CCTA monthly meeting