|
News of the Red Deer Region
snippets and
summaries of news from local resources including media, press releases
and personal knowledge
October 2011 Part 2
Oct. 29, 2011
New Sylvan Lake Town Hall Design Approved
Sylvan Lake town council has approved the construction of a 2-storey,
$7.23 million administration building at the site of the former RCMP
detachment. The original budget had been $7 million but the lowest bid
came in at $8.8 million so several adjustments had to be made. Council
chamber and offices will be on the main floor, additional offices on the
second floor and the town archives in the basement. Several departments
that currently work out of other buildings will be relocate to the new
facility, expected to be completed in about a year and a half. The RCMP
building will be demolished soon.
Ideas Sought for New Native
Friendship
Centre
The Red Deer Native Friendship Society has been gathering ideas and
feedback on its proposed new friendship and healing centre expected to
be built on the northeast side of the city. Plans include 16 affordable
living suites, an exhibition area for aboriginal art, a multi-purpose
space for activities, support services and a sweat lodge. The new
facility is expected to cost between $5 and $8 million. The centre
currently operates downtown.
Downtown Group Has New Executive
Director
The Red Deer Downtown Business Association has hired a new executive
director, expected to start in mid-November. Graham Barclay has worked
as business development manager at Prairie Office Plus for the past four
years and is secretary-treasurer of the Red Deer Chamber of Commerce. He
is optimistic about the downtown with the recent opening of the Donald
School of Business, the revitalizing of Little Gaetz and the ongoing
progress of the Greater Downtown Action Plan.
Oct. 28, 2011
Public School Trustees Support Aquatic
Centre
Red Deer Public School trustees have voted unanimously to provide a
letter of support for the proposed new aquatic centre to be located next
to the Recreation Centre downtown. The centre would be the only aquatics
facility in the city with a 50-metre pool. Although proponents hope to
start construction in 2014, the City's long term capital plan sees a
start no earlier than 2020 unless the provincial and federal governments
contribute significantly to the project.
Major Development Starts at
East Lacombe
Groundwork has begun on the major Wolf Creek Crossing development on the
east side of Lacombe along Highway 12. The first phase will consist of a
15-acre commercial power centre, 80-room hotel and 15 townhouse units.
The next phase will add another 12 acres of commercial land. Next to be
developed will be 22 acres of light industrial and 4.5 acres of
high-density residential land. More than 14 acres are designated for
parks.
Doomed Jewish Settlement Remembered
The first Jewish agricultural colony in Alberta was established at
Blank's Lake near Pine Lake in the early 1890s and only lasted about
five years as a result of harsh weather, limited resources, prejudice
and bad luck. At the time, Central Alberta was in the midst of a cold,
dry spell when a group of 70 Russian Jews arrived with a trunk full of
seed potatoes and not much else. The remains of some tiny houses and
documents have recently been discovered by a few researchers and
historians.
Oct. 27, 2011
New Red Deer Medical Clinic Under
Construction
A new medical clinic building is currently under construction in Red
Deer along Gaetz Avenue a couple of blocks from 32 Street at the former
Turbo gas station site. The 7,700 sq. ft. building will include a
walk-in clinic, offices for medical professionals, a pharmacy and 1,600
sq. ft. of commercial space. It is expected to be completed by mid-March
2012. The gas station was demolished in 2004 and the land was treated
for soil contamination.
Oct. 26, 2011
Sherman Tank Exchange at Olds Legion
The Olds Royal Canadian Legion is trading the American-built Sherman
tank they have owned since 1993 for one that is more representative of
the community's veterans. Through a deal worked out with the Lord
Strathcona's Horse Museum in Calgary, the legion will get a 1945-built
Sherman that is the same kind of tank that would have been used by the
Olds-based B Squadron of the King's Own Calgary Regiment between 1955
and 1968.
Innisfail Wildlife Park Wins
Tourism
Award
The 90-acre Discovery Wildlife Park in Innisfail won the top prize in
the Sustainable Tourism category at the 2011 Alberta Tourism Awards
Monday. The facility's sustainable practices include composting animal
waste and using solar power as well as other initiatives. The park has
about 150 animals representing more than 40 species. Most of the park's
native species were orphaned in the wild while the exotic animals are
from zoos that closed. In 2007, the park won an award for marketing
excellence.
Oct. 25, 2011
Retro Diners to be Built at Bowden
Two metal-clad retro diners being built on the east side of Bowden along
Highway 2 are expected to be open by Christmas. One will be a sit-down
restaurant with features like chrome stools and checkered floors. The
other will house the kitchen and offer drive-through service. Shaw
International has produced five similar eateries including one in the
Burnt Lake Business Park west of Highway 2 at Red Deer. The diner will
have seating for 50 and focus on breakfasts and burgers. Diners were
popular during the first half of the 20th century when the elongated,
prefabricated restaurants operated throughout North America.
Unique Turtle Shell
Fossil Found Near Blackfalds
The Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology at Drumheller is hailing a
fossil find at Burbank near Blackfalds of a well-preserved complete
ancient juvenile snapping turtle shell as unique in the province. It was
found during a Gateway Christian School Grade 3 field trip at the
Paskapoo Formation of the Western Canadian sedimentary basin which is a
remnant of the Paleocene Age, a geologic epoch about 60 million years
ago. The fossil is expected to be turned over to the museum and
eventually put on display.
Oct. 24, 2011
Blackfalds Historical Society Restores
Tombstones
The Blackfalds and Area Historical Society has restored the oldest
tombstone in the 4-acre Blackfalds Cemetery, now surrounded by
development, and plans to restore more in the future. The 1900 Marshall
tombstone is the oldest of 450 monuments and was one of a dozen
vandalized in 1954. The society was formed in 2005 to restore, collect
and educate about the history of Blackfalds.
Oct. 21, 2011
TEDx Conference
Focuses on
Connectivity
Red Deer's first TEDx conference attracted 11 speakers, most from
Central Alberta, and the maximum 99 people in the audience, to share a
range of ideas on how to increase connectivity with nature, strangers,
family and co-workers. TED (Technology, Entertainment and Design) is an
independently organized series of conferences held around the world to
increase the power of ideas. TEDx International requires that the event
be limited to 99 people but 147 applied to attend the Red Deer
conference. A similar event will likely be held in 2012 or 2013.
New Skyway Centre Attracting More Tenants
The 3-storey Skyway Professional Centre, currently under construction
north of the Red Deer Regional Hospital Centre at the former Central
Alberta Florists site, will open for leasehold improvements to its
tenants early in the new year with only 4,000 of the building's 45,000
sq. ft. still available for lease. The most recent tenant to confirm is
Stems Floral Gallery which will operate a gift shop and coffee/snack bar
in addition to its floral business. Other tenants confirmed include
Oasis Medical Centre, Red Deer's orthopedic surgeons, CBI Health Group
and a podiatrist.
Changes at Dangerous Highway
Intersection
Work has begun to create a right-in, right-out change to the
intersection of Highway 11 and Highway 781/50 St. at Sylvan Lake that
will eliminate left turning movements. The improvements were mutually
agreed upon by the town and Alberta Transportation at the intersection
where a number of fatal collisions have occurred over the years. Traffic
lights were considered but another nearby intersection already has
controls and Highway 781 will eventually be realigned to meet up with
Highway 20. In addition, the province will pay for a new road that
connects 50 St. to Highway 20.
Oct. 19, 2011
New
Air Passenger
Service Considered
In a quarterly update to Red Deer County council recently, Red Deer
Regional Airport Authority CEO RJ Steenstra indicated that Integra Air
is seriously considering a Lethbridge-Red Deer-Fort McMurray route in
the near future. This follows the recent announcement that Northwestern
Air Lease is returning to the airport with flights to Kelowna starting
in November. However, the airport lost Swanberg Air in September leaving
the airport without any scheduled service for two months. Due to the
situation, Transport Canada has allowed an extension to the normal
deadline to hit required passenger numbers to qualify for federal ACAP
(Airports Capital Assistance Program) funding.
Municipalities Negotiate New Plasco Contract
Nine Central Alberta municipalities are in the process of negotiating a
new contract with Plasco Energy Group for the $90 million
waste-to-energy plant proposed for a site east of Penhold next to the
Horn Hill Waste Transfer Station. The original contract outlining how
much garbage each municipality would provide and signed in 2008 expired
in mid-2010 after several extensions. The commitment of Plasco to fund
the project remains. The gasification plant was first proposed in 2007
and a commission of 15 municipalities was established to pursue the
project. Six have since dropped out.
New Fire Halls for Innisfail and Olds
The Town of Innisfail is building a $1.8 million conversion of the
former Mary Morton Public Library into a new fire hall that involves
renovating the existing building into offices, training rooms, change
rooms, operations centre and hose-drying tower. Seven equipment bays
will be built on the library's parking lot and a vacant lot will provide
parking space. A new library will be part of the new $8.5 million
gathering place expected to open in the new year. Meanwhile, the Town of
Olds is building a new $3.2 million multi-bay fire hall next to the RCMP
detachment building that opened in 2004. One bay will be leased to
Alberta Health Services for ambulances.
County Residents Happy with Quality
of Life
An Ipsos Reid Citizen Satisfaction Survey of 250 county residents phoned over the summer and
summarized at Red Deer County council indicates that 96% stated that
quality of life in the county is good or very good. The biggest issues raised by residents
were roads and snow removal. About 70% were very or somewhat
satisfied with their last contact with county staff. In terms of value for property taxes, 64% indicated
good or very good value.
City Hosts Walkable Downtown Experiment
The City of Red Deer hosted the Ross Street Experiment recently to see
what people would think of having a more vibrant pedestrian environment
downtown. A lane of traffic and a parking lane between 49 Ave. and Gaetz
Ave. were closed for the day to accommodate about two dozen tables
adorned with red and white tablecloths. The event was part of the city's
Integrated Movement Study which is exploring future strategies for all
forms of transportation.
Red Deer Participates in Climate Change Plan
Red Deer is one of two prairie cities and one of 14 Canadian communities
participating in the Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation Plan with
assistance from the Canadian branch of the International Council for
Local Environmental Initiatives. Other Canadian cities include Calgary,
Vancouver, Windsor, Iqaluit and New Glasgow, N.S. City council has
approved the initial steps to research, create a plan and implement a
strategy for sustainable development that considers the impact to the
environment from climate change. The project is part of the city's
Environmental Master Plan approved earlier this year.
Red Deer One of Top Entrepreneurial Cities
Red Deer is ranked 7th of 100 communities in Canada according to a study
by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business in its 2011 Top
Entrepreneurial Cities report called 'Communities in Boom'. The rankings
were based on level of entrepreneurial activity, business outlook and
local government influence on business operations. Nine of the top 10
were from either Alberta or Saskatchewan.
Oct. 18, 2011
Pool Study Completed;
Facility 10 Years Away
Red Deer city council recently reviewed the completed 3-phase study of a
proposed 50-metre pool and aquatics centre to be connected to the
existing Recreation Centre on the southeast corner of downtown. The $90
million project is still likely 10 years from reality, however, as
council could not justify changing its priority in the adopted
multi-year capital plan unless significant investment from the
provincial and federal governments can be obtained. The $200,000 study
included a site selection process, a concept plan and a business plan.
Operational costs for the facility will also be fairly high at around
$4.5 million per year. At a projected income of around $1.2 million, the
city will need to provide $3 million annually to keep the aquatics
centre operational.
Northwestern Air Lease Returns to Red Deer
Northwestern
Air Lease has announced that it will be offering direct scheduled
passenger flights between Red Deer Regional Airport and Kelowna
beginning November 18 on Fridays and Sundays. If there is sufficient
interest, the service could be expanded further west, possibly to
Abbotsford. Increased frequency is also an option. Flying the route will
be a 16-passenger Jetstream 32 aircraft. The plane and crew
will be based out of the Red Deer airport and be available for charter
service when not engaged in scheduled flights. The airline had offered
flights from Red Deer to points in Northern Alberta and Saskatchewan
from December 2006 to July 2010.
Loblaws Commits to New City Grocery Store
Loblaws Companies has committed to a 29,225 sq. ft. grocery building in
the new commercial area of Clearview Market Square on the northeast side
of Red Deer. It's not known yet which store brand it will operate under.
The company operates Extra Foods, Real Canadian Superstore, No Frills
and Loblaws. Four banks have already committed to the area -- Royal
Bank, TD Canada Trust, CIBC and Servus Credit Union. Clearview Market
Square covers about 22 acres and will have more than 263,000 sq. ft. of
leasable space.
Innisfail Wildlife Park Nominated for Award
Discovery Wildlife Park in Innisfail has been nominated for the
sustainable tourism award at the Travel Alberta industry conference.
Many of the park's buildings were rescued from the landfill and most of
the park's native species are orphans brought to the facility by Alberta
Sustainable Resources. Several of the exotic animals are from zoos
facing closure.
Counties Enforcing Rules on Lake Encroachments
Stettler County is informing property owners around Buffalo Lake who
have encroached on environmental reserves to repair any damages to the
protected land including replacement of trees taken down. Lacombe County
has taken similar measures around Sylvan Lake and Gull Lake.
Environmental reserves are set aside to protect the lakes by providing a
buffer between development and fragile ecosystems.
Top of page
|
