NEWS of the Red Deer Region - August 16-31, 2007

 
News of the Red Deer Region
snippets and summaries of news reports from local media (primarily Red Deer Advocate and Red Deer Express).
August 2007 Part 2

August 31, 2007
Two Aging City Schools Get Provincial Funding
Alberta Education has announced that $7 million will go toward renovations to 50-year-old St. Thomas Aquinas School and $6.6 million to modernize 25-year-old G.H. Dawe Community School. G.H. Dawe is one third of a partnership between the public and Catholic school divisions and the city that was the first of its kind in the province. The city is planning a $27 million revitalization of the recreation portion of the facility that will include a redesigned pool area. The old G.H. Dawe school gym will be used by the city for a community activity centre. Also receiving funding is C.P. Blakely Elementary School in Sylvan Lake toward a $8.5 million modernization.
Innisfail Highway Interchange Being Improved
Work is now underway to replace the cloverleaf loops with more efficient ramps at the interchange of Highways QE2 and 54 at Innisfail. The Highway 54 overpass will later be widened to four lanes into town. There will also be improvements to the intersection of Highways 54 and 2A. Other parts of the overall project include widening the median on Highway QE2 and extending Highway 2A to the south overpass. Ultimately, Highway 54 will be moved to the south interchange and extended to the west side of town.

August 30, 2007
Gasoline Alley Attracting More Development
Two more restaurants and a 90-acre residential development are the latest in a series of possible projects slated for Gasoline Alley, immediately south of Red Deer. Under construction already is a 10-screen 2,000-seat Landmark Cinema complex and an Ashley Furniture outlet. Land is also being cleared for a Community Savings corporate office tower that could start construction this winter. Farther east, construction is well underway on the first of four quarter sections for industrial development.
Draft City Municipal Plan Anticipates Growth
The city of Red Deer updated draft Municipal Development Plan was on display at an open house yesterday anticipating a doubling of population within 25 years and a tripling of land area in 10 years. Three more locations for commercial town centres were identified outside the city's current boundary. The greater downtown area will remain the central hub for offices, business and culture. The city will be expanding west, north and east. Another open house is set for Sept. 11 at Red Deer Lodge.

August 29, 2007
Lacombe Offers Affordable Housing in Land Deal
The town of Lacombe has acquired the right to develop about 300 acres of land owned by Canadian University College that will have room for 1,300 homes, some of which will be sold at cost to first-time buyers to make affordable housing available. The balance of the lots will be sold at market value. Zoning will be adjusted to allow construction of more condominiums, townhouses and apartments to create more variety of housing options.

August 28, 2007
City Residents Happy With Quality of Life
Of 300 Red Deer adults surveyed, 96% said the city's quality of life was good to very good according to an Ipsos Reid poll conducted recently. Respondents cited the economy, standard of living and quality parks and green spaces as the main reasons why Red Deer offers such a high quality of life. Last year, a similar survey indicated 97% were happy living in the city. 81% of those surveyed said they get good value for tax dollars spent, down from 91% last year. The services most were willing to pay higher taxes for included police, roads and infrastructure and recreation. 31% were most concerned with social issues followed by transportation at 19%.
Water Conservation Strategy Approved by City Council
Red Deer council unanimously approved a new water conservation strategy yesterday. The goal is to reduce per capita water usage 20% in the next five years. Part of the strategy could include a three-tier rate structure based on usage. Various ways of reducing consumption will be promoted to residents and businesses.
City Water Licence Will Provide for Double Population
The existing water licence allocated to Red Deer from the Red Deer River will provide sufficient water for a population of 135,000 to 175,000 depending on how successful water conservation strategies are. Some city councillors are suggesting that, in planning strategies for a city of 300,000 anticipated in 50-75 years, the city should apply to the province for additional allocation.
Sylvan Lake Grows by 5.1%
The town of Sylvan Lake added 521 people in the past year putting the population at 10,729, up from 10,208, according to this year's municipal census. Much of the population is young and rich -- 72% younger than 45 and 56% under 35. More than half of the 3,917 households had a gross annual income of at least $70,000. The town had 272 homes under construction.

August 27, 2007
World Class Biofuel Plant Planned for Stettler
A $190 million biofuel production and extraction plant by Greenlab Energy is planned for a 153 acre site in an industrial park on the east side of Stettler. The first of five phases could start in eight to ten months. Area canola farmers will receive a boost since the plant will require about 100 truckloads of grain daily representing 27 million bushels of canola yearly. That will produce about 300 million litres of biofuels per year. One of the byproducts will be enough electricity to not only supply the plant but much of the town. Later phases will include an educational campus that will house 400 students per year, administration, a conference centre and 200-room hotel and commercial processing components. It would be the first facility of its kind in Canada.

August 24, 2007
Red Deer College Expansion Gets Another $18 Million
Alberta Advanced Education and Technologies has put another $18 million toward the expansion of Red Deer College bringing the total contributed by the province to $57 million. The new money will help pay for the college's new centres for trades, technology, manufacturing and innovation recognizing Alberta's need for more skilled workers. The new buildings are designed to hold 3,000 additional students when they open in the fall of 2008. The second component of the college's Building Communities Through Learning project will be to create a Centre for Regional Sport and Wellness and a Centre for Health Education, both expected to be open in 2010.
Jumbo Car Wash Building in Clearview Industrial Park
A new state-of-the-art $5 million Jumbo car wash is currently under construction in the Clearview Industrial Park in Red Deer County just south of the city. The new facility will consist of 12-bay wash barn, four recreational vehicle wash bays and two automatic wash bays. The 4.6 acre site will also have RV storage and mini storage. The developers also own 54 acres of land on the west side of the 40 Ave. extension.

August 22, 2007
Region's Bixby in Canadian Idol Top Four
Jaydee Bixby, now of Red Deer and formerly of Drumheller, has reached the top four of Canadian Idol. The 17-year-old Hunting Hills High School student will be at a big homecoming celebration in Drumheller on Saturday that will be filmed by CTV.
Wildlife Centre Owl Star of TV and Film
Otis the great horned owl is not only the star of the Medicine River Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre's educational program, but has recently been filmed to star in an episode of 'Corner Gas' and a CBC movie called 'Secrets of the Nutcracker'. Carol Kelly, founder of the centre west of Spruce View, believes that the 5-year-old owl's public appearances have saved the lives of hundreds of wild owls.
Eckville Enjoys Growth Spurt
Like other communities in Central Alberta, the town of Eckville with a population around 1,000 is enjoying a growth spurt with lot prices relatively affordable. Prior to this year, only a couple of lots in the McDonald Heights subdivision had been sold. The tally is now up to 14.

August 21, 2007
Penhold States Annexation Case To Board
At a public hearing yesterday, the town of Penhold made its case to the Municipal Government Board to annex 736 acres of land from Red Deer County. The proposed annexation is expected to provide enough industrial and commercial land for 25 years and enough residential land for 20 years. It would help to create a tax balance between residential and non-residential. The plan includes two quarter sections north, two quarter sections south and less than a quarter section east of the town with a current population of about 2,000. In the next 20 years, the population is expected to reach 3,200. The county has already approved the plan.
Demand for Nordegg Lots High
About 260 people competed in a draw for 30 Clearview County owned lots located in a mountainous area just northwest of the Nordegg townsite and north of Highway 11. The lots sold for $105,000 to $115,000 and ranged in size from two to two and half acres. Last week, 198 interested buyers competed for 22 cottage lots that sold for $53,000 to $60,000 and were about one acre in size. No other lots are expected until 2009.

August 18, 2007
Ellis Bird Farm Gets Funding for 20 Years
The Ellis Bird Farm east of Blackfalds has entered a 20 year contract with MEGlobal, operators of two ethylene glycol plants across the road. The company will give the bird sanctuary $120,000 in annual operating funding which will increase with inflation. The bird sanctuary will continue to lease 640 acres for $1 per month continuing the efforts of Charlie Ellis and sister Winnie who transformed their backyard into a wildlife haven prior to being turned over to Union Carbide, the previous owner of the petrochemical plant, in 1982. The Bird Farm includes a visitors centre, teahouse, walking trails and gardens. It is dedicated to the conservation of mountain bluebirds, tree swallows and other native cavity nesting birds.

August 17, 2007
Pine Lake Residents Concerned About Overdevelopment
About 100 residents turned out to look at a Pine Lake concept plan which proposes a hamlet-type community at the northwest end of the lake and other small residential developments at other sites just off the lake. Although the growth plan was put together by a committee of Red Deer County council members, resort owners, area farmers and residents, many people who attended the open house believe that the lake has reached its recreational capacity and further development would impact water quality. The crowd recommended that the county do a more detailed study on the lake's capacity to absorb more development before the concept plan is accepted.

August 16, 2007
Stettler Annexation Plan Goes to Mediation
As a result of the town of Stettler and Stettler County stalemated over future growth of the town, the process has moved to mediation. The town wants to annex 25 quarter sections, about 4,000 acres, to sustain growth over the next 60 years. The county is willing to give up 2 quarter sections, about 320 acres, in the short to medium term and more in the long term if future growth of the town warranted. The town currently has about 1,600 acres of developed land and an inventory of 793 acres with a population of about 5,400 people. Both municipalities have indicated a willingness to update their intermunicipal development plan.
Penhold Experiencing Building Boom
The town of Penhold has blasted past last year's residential building permits. As of Aug. 10, 51 single family dwellings with a combined value of $8 million have been approved. This compares to 21 similar type permits worth about $3 million for the entire year in 2006. An industrial area is expected to start construction early next year. Currently most residents commute to Red Deer or as far away as Calgary or northern Alberta. The town has a population of close to 2,000.
Eckville Shows Modest Population Growth
The town of Eckville municipal census this year shows that the population is 1,002. This compares to 951 in 2006 according to last year's Canada Census results. The previous national census in 2001 showed a population of 1,019. The current results indicate that the number of children have declined but the number of seniors over 65 now represent 21% of the population. Although 27 housing lots have been sold over the past two years, households are smaller.

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