Whitecourt Town Council update

West Yellowhead MLA Martin Long attended the September 28 Regular Meeting of Council to provide information on recent grant allocations to the community. Whitecourt will receive over $1 million from the Municipal Operating Support Transfer which was created by the Government of Alberta to support municipalities with operating impacts due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Whitecourt has also been awarded $4,235,549 for improvements to the Wastewater Treatment Plant under the Strategic Transportation Infrastructure Program. Thank you to the Government of Alberta for its support of our community.

Whitecourt Town Council thanks all of those that provided input on the 2021 Budget at last night’s Budget Public Input Session and through written submissions. Your feedback will be reviewed by Town Council during budget deliberations which begin next week. Early in 2021, Council will be hosting its annual Budget Open House which will provide ratepayers further opportunity to share comments and learn about the budget. Watch for further details on the open house in the new year.

The 2020 20-Year Capital and Major Maintenance Plan has been adopted. The Plan, which includes 135 projects, provides a vision for the long-term development of Whitecourt’s infrastructure; land development; parks and trails; and building and recreational/cultural facilities to meet the needs of our growing community. The Plan incorporates projects and time- lines identified through engineering studies, planning sessions, workshops, budget deliberations, and public engagement activities. The Plan is available to view at www.whitecourt.ca.

Whitecourt will be applying for funding through the COVID-19 Resilience Stream grant program to fund the Scott Safety Centre Ice Plant Upgrade.  If approved, the project would receive up to 80% funding from the federal government.

The Whitecourt Chamber of Commerce submitted a letter requesting Council review parking levies applied  to the current Downtown Parking Overlay District. Parking levies are collected to fund future public parking in the downtown area; however, the Chamber feels the practice is detrimental to downtown development. Council has directed Administration to prepare options for how to address this concern and will be reviewing the item during 2021 budget deliberations.

Council is recruiting for public appointments to Council Committees. Share your voice and help shape our commu- nity by applying to serve on a Council Committee. Information on public appointment vacancies can be found on www.whitecourt.ca.

Council has approved a street closure request made by the Chamber of Commerce for the Trunk or Treat event scheduled for October 31. The event involves local businesses purchasing a spot on the street to bring a decorated vehicle to serve treats to children as they come up to “trunk or treat”. 50 Street from 50 Avenue and 53 Avenue will be closed between 9:00

a.m. and 5:00 p.m. to accommodate the event.

The name “Scott” has been added to Whitecourt’s Available Street Name List. The name honours local residents Brian, Val and Kyle Scott who have all contributed countless hours to a number of organizations and initiatives throughout our com- munity.

Council scheduled its annual Planning Session for January 21 through 23, 2021.