Council Overview
Information from Drumheller Town Council Regular Council Meeting
Monday, April 3, 2023
Drumheller Mayor Heather Colberg opened the meeting and announced the 20-20 Challenge has begun; this is to challenge residents to take 20 minutes each day to help clean up the community in the 20 days leading up to Earth Day on Saturday, April 22.
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Drumheller Resiliency and Flood Mitigation Office project director Deighen Blakely presented amendments on expropriation documents which were previously approved by council. When these documents were submitted to the Land Titles office there were some concerns around wording for legal land descriptions for two parcels in Newcastle.
Ms. Blakely also brought forward amendments for another document for expropriation of a parcel in East Coulee; although this document has not been rejected by the Land Titles Office this is being done preemptively as a housekeeping item.
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Manager of Economic Development Reg Johnston presented council with the Drumheller Housing Strategy final report. This is a 10-year plan which is a living document, and aims to deliver increased housing choice, supply, diversity, and affordability.
Based on community engagement sessions previously held, the Town’s population is anticipated to grow to between 8,846 and 9,032 people by 2031, with about 25 per cent of the population being seniors.
Mr. Johnston shared there are some actionable items which have been prioritized. This includes diversifying the type of housing available, regulating short term vacation rentals, and prioritizing Town-owned land for residential development. Some of these actionable items are already in progress, and the goal is to have the high priority action items completed by 2025.
There are some funding streams the Town could utilize from both federal and provincial governments, including a portion of the $4 billion federal Housing Accelerator Fund which will open in June 2023 and allow municipal governments to fast track the creation of 100,000 new homes across the country.
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Capital project manager Kelcie Wilson presented council with a request to defer the Water, Wastewater Treatment Plant Master Plan, which was scheduled to be conducted this year, until 2025.
It was also recommended to, in its place, conduct the Water Master Plan and reallocate $25,000 of funding from the North Drumheller River Crossing - Water Main capital project, which was approved in 2022 and completed under budget, in order to bridge funding gaps.
Council unanimously approved the project change and reallocation of funding.
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The meeting was adjourned to a closed session.
Complete minutes from council meetings can be found on www.drumheller.ca once they have been adopted.