Catch Council last night?
Here are some highlights:
- RCMP Staff Sergeant Lacey Blair, along with former Detachment Commander Dave Browne, provided an update on the organization's operations.
- Council members asked several questions and sought clarity on exactly how many RCMP officers are working in Peace River. Blair explained that, "The Town of Peace River funds 12 positions – 0.5 of a position of that is funded by Northern Sunrise County. 18 positions are funded by the province." She added that there are currently 3 soft vacancies and 1 hard vacancy among those.
- Browne explained that he had attended the Council meeting because he had been asked to help clear up communication regarding how many RCMP are working in Peace River, in relation to comments made by Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Services Mike Ellis in the Alberta Legislature.
- Asked about who funds Cst. Arthur Sunday's position, Blair said that was half funded by the Town and half by NSC. NSC, she said, had expressed interest in Sunday spending time in Grimshaw, which is taken out of NSC's portion of the funding.
- Browne and Blair answered several more questions about the RCMP in Peace River. You can watch the discussion at the start of the Council meeting here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jEHgrdsNe64
- Council passed third reading of Bylaw No. 2171, Affordable Housing Bylaw. This bylaw maintains the status quo on taxation of affordable housing properties in the Town, meaning they will continue to have to pay municipal property taxes.
- Council awarded Grants to Organizations to several groups. Peace River Minor Hockey U18C received $1,000; Peace Playland received $4,000; Peace River Scottish Society received $2,500; Peace River Rotaract received $9,480 to help facilitate River Days; the Wahoos Swim Club received $1,000; the Peace River & District Chamber of Commerce received $1,400 for the Christmas parade; and World Jet Boat Races, Western Division received $10,000 to facilitate this summer's race event. Separately, Council directed Administration to fund Citizens on Patrol for $5,000, to be taken out of the Town's operational fund.
- This one deserves a huge shout out to our friends at Northern Sunrise County – THE HOT TUB IS A GO! The Town received one submission for hot tub replacement work, which came in at $1,432,343. The total budget for the project from the Town's end was $900,000. Through the Intermunicipal Collaboration Framework committee with NSC, the Town made a formal request for funding assistance for the project. NSC confirmed they are willing to contribute up to $800,000 to the hot tub replacement project. Their commitment will be based on actual costs and requires recognition of their participation at the facility. Council therefore approved an increase of $845,579 to the 2025 Capital Project budget for the hot tub replacement project, bringing the total project budget to $1,610,000. We'll have more to say on this in the future!
- Council accepted a briefing note regarding 2025 Mobile Home Tax Arrears Collection. The note informs Council about considerations regarding tax collection on several mobile home properties in town. The current arrears include five properties in Cheviot Heights, nine properties in Coolsprings, and nine properties in Terrace. The total owing is roughly $20,000. Administration sent arrears letters to these mobile home owners January 28, informing owners that if the amounts were not paid, tax recovery proceedings would begin. The Town has not initiated mobile home tax recovery enforcement since 2018, although non-mobile home tax recovery has been initiated annually. Enforcement is a requirement under the Municipal Government Act. Council also directed Administration to prepare a briefing note on a potential monthly tax payment plan for mobile home residents.
Always more.
The agenda and all related documents is here: https://peaceriver.civicweb.net/filepro/documents/?expanded=9574,141215…
And you can watch it again here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jEHgrdsNe64
Our next Council meeting is 5pm Monday, April 28, 2025.
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