Council Overview
Information from Drumheller Town Council Regular Council Meeting
Monday, April 4, 2022
Mayor Heather Colberg opened the meeting and Councillor Tom Zariski gave an update on the Drumheller Legion’s Jail and Bail on Friday, April 1 (see front page for more information).
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Drumheller Resiliency and Flood Mitigation Office (DRFMO) project director Deighen Blakely shared an overhead power line must be addressed prior to construction of the Downtown Dike; she noted the tender for this project is expected to be posted soon.
A quote for $353,471 was received from ATCO Electric to remove the overhead line and relocate services by redirecting the line underground; an additional Shaw utility line is also located in this area and work is expected to be completed in conjunction to move these services, though a quote has not yet been received.
This line, regardless of whether the upcoming Road Closure bylaw to close a portion of Riverside Drive is passed, is required to be moved to complete berm construction.
Council approved the motion as presented.
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Director of Protective Services Greg Peters presented council with a request to purchase a new tanker truck for the Drumheller Fire Department. A tender was posted and only two bids were received. It was recommended the tender be awarded to Fort Garry Fire Trucks Ltd for $383,940.
This amount is some $33,940 above the approved Capital Budget amount.
Council approved the purchase of the new tanker truck as presented.
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Economic Development manager Reg Johnston presented council with a request to award the tender for the development of the downtown Triangle Plaza. Two bids were received, and it was recommended the tender be awarded to Landform Inc. in the amount of $1,017,507.69 to construct the plaza this year.
Due to an additional $408,000 recently received in federal funding through the Canadian Community Revitalization Fund from PrairiesCan, a washroom will be built alongside the plaza; this was not included in the initial design plan.
Council approved the tender award as presented.
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Community Planning and Social Planning manager April Harrison presented council with the Poverty Reduction review.
She explained some 12.5 per cent of children under five live in poverty, and a total of 314 households accessed the local food bank within the last year; 51 per cent of recipients were children under 18.
In 2021 the living wage dropped slightly over the previous year, from $23.77 per hour to $19.70 per hour; however, Ms. Harrison noted the average starting salary in Drumheller is about $16 per hour.
A needs assessment was conducted in 2017 to get a better understanding of what supports are needed in the community, and a Poverty Reduction coordinator position, supported through grant funding, was established in April 2021. This funding has now ended and, despite being one of council’s strategic priorities, whether to keep the position is being deliberated within the 2022 Operating Budget. Budget deliberations will be brought back at the next regular council meeting.
Complete minutes from council meetings can be found on
www.drumheller.ca once they have been adopted.