Dec. 21, 2021 meeting

Joe McWilliams
Lakeside Leader

Curling club comes calling

Fundraising is a way of life for curling clubs these days. In the case of the Slave Lake Curling Club, that includes appeals to town council for funding.

SLCC president Wayne Dastou and secretary Donna Arsenault presented their case to council. Arsenault did most of the talking. She told council that the town once contributed something like $19,000 to the curling club in support of its program for younger curlers. That was cut in half at one point, and then ended altogether.

“What do we have to do to get funding?” she asked. “Anything would be a help.”

Arsenault explained how curling fees don’t come close to covering costs. The other usually-reliable source of cash – the upstairs bar – has been more or less out of the picture due to COVID. So the club is struggling to make ends meet.

The club has applied for grants, Arsenault said, and other fundraising schemes are in the works.

Two things, said mayor Tyler Warman. One – never assume the money you got last year will be automatic this year. Two – council generally wants groups to become self-sufficient.

However, the request will be discussed in budget deliberations, he promised.

WJS

Andrew Achoba, the program manager for WJS Canada in Slave Lake, updated council on what services WJS offers in the community. These include supporting people with “diverse abilities” (formerly known as disabilities), family support work, residential care and a community employment program (possibly among others).

WJS is applying for a renewal of its contract with the Government of Alberta, Achoba said. As such, a letter of support from the town would come in handy.

“We’re hoping with a new contract we’ll bring new services to town,” Achoba added.

Peace Library System

Louisa Robison, the CEO of the Peace Library System, brought council its annual update from the organization, which provides support services for libraries in the northwest part of the province. The town provides an annual grant to the PLS to support those services. Robison said the rate ($6.37 per capita) would not be changing for 2022. Assuming a population of 6,500, that would amount to something over $41,000. Robison says the population figures PLS goes by are provided by the Government of Alberta, and because they are based on the 2016 census, they may not be accurate.

Councillor Kimberly Hughes, recently assigned to the library board, told Robison she appreciates what PLS does.

“I didn’t realize the services available and the support you offer,” she said.

Mayor Warman echoed that remark, saying when he joined council he had been quite ignorant of the role the library plays in the community.

“I’ve learned a lot,” he said, calling the library, “a connection point for the community.”

Council will make a decision on the funding in its budget deliberations.

ATCO franchise agreement

The agreement between the town and ATCO Electric and Gas by which ATCO pays the town a certain amount for the right to use town property for its infrastructure is up for renewal, as it expires in July of next year. The question before council was whether to rubber-stamp another 15-year deal at the current rates, negotiate a new one, or let it expire.

The franchise fees paid by ATCO are passed on to ATCO customers, which makes it in effect another type of tax. Unlike property taxes, it affects all ATCO customers equally, whereas property taxes vary considerably, based on assessed property values.

Council tabled the matter to its Jan. 4 meeting.

Mayor’s corner

Finishing off the open portion of the meeting, mayor Warman updated his colleagues on the Alberta North Central Alliance (ANCA), which is a new effort by five First Nations and five municipalities in the area to work together on matters of mutual interest. The group was not, it turned out, successful in winning a grant through the federal CEDI program.

“It’s unfortunate,” Warman said, but added CEDI did provide some other supports. The group will continue to meet.

Other news: council met with the managers of West Fraser’s two local forest products mills – Slave Lake Veneer and Slave Lake Pulp. They talked about how to work together, how to attract people to town and so on. We encouraged them to talk to our economic development team, Warman said.

Finally, Warman spoke about the very busy schedule for councillors over the previous weeks, which included strategic planning, budgeting and meeting with ministers.