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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1978-01-20 Council Minutesa Im MEETING OF LOCAL GOVERNING OFFICALS FRIDAY, JANUARY 20th, 1978 The annual meeting of Local Governing Officials was held in the office of the Municipal District of Kneehill #48, Three Hills, on Friday, January 20th, 1978, commencing at 1 30 P M Representatives present were M--P----- Stanley Schumacher, Drumheller Gordon Towers,Red Deer M L A Allan Warrack Gordon Taylor J Williams, Researcher for G Taylor M D Kneehill #48 G A Berdahl C W Poole Ralph W Brown, Reeve Art W Bauer Leonard Litz T A Ferguson Reginald Campbell Alex Cunningham Norman Soder Glenn Smyth Town of Three Hills ------------------------ K A Wright Chester Davidson Town of Trochu Raymond Frere E Tepper Dick Sommerville, Administrator Village of Linden --------------- - - -- Floyd Sillito, Secretary - Manager Three Hills School Division W Adrian, Secretary- Treasurer G Wilson, Superintendent of Schools M Brown D Buyer J Benedict Three Hills Hospital ----------------- - - - - -- Hugh Sommerville, Administrator Art Taylor, Board Member Trochu -Hospital -------- - - - - -- -- Ron Hepburn, Board Member Sister Helen Levasseur, Administrator Elnora -Hospital ---------=------- - - - - -- Dave Wagstaff, Board Member J C Jeffer,y,Mun Administrat�Or• Jean Wilkinson Miss Malpass, Representative from the Three Hills Capital Mr K Wright moved Mr R Brown act as Chairman of the meeting Carried Those present introduced themselves and named the area or municipalit} they were representing II Mr J C Jeffery reviewed the minutes from the last combined r}eeting and noted the items which were covered He then read the t, A TAW rm MEETING OF LOCAL GjvrIf1V_NG OFFICIALS, FRIDAY JANUARY 20th,1978 P 2 minutes Mr Wright moved the minutes of the last meeting be adopted Mr Benedict seconded the motion Carried TOWN OF THREE HILLS Mr Brown then asked for a report from the Town of Three Hills Mr K Wright gave a brief summary of the town's activities in 1977 He noted the town's population at last census was 1662 and is now about 1700 The town now has its own contract with the R C M P due to the increase in population Three new wells south west of the town have been developed and tied into the town water system He further noted that the Town is looking for a new administrator, and also noted that there are five new councillors VILLAGE OF LINDEN Mr Floyd Sillito, Secretary - Manager, noted that Linden had a busy year in 1977 The Lynn Haven Senior Citizen Apartments were opened and 7 of the 12 units are now occupied An annexation of about 89 acres in the north west corner of the village is underway which will provide for a new mobile home subidivision and a 72 acre industrial park. and a new residential subdivision The village hope to provide a golf course in 1978 The sewage lagoon has been completed and is operating Mr Sillito also noted that the private school is in operation and it is hoped that the problems concerning this school will soon resolve itself The main street of Linden will be paved by the Provincial Government in 1978 The tennis court was resurfaced in 1977 and the residents have had very good use of the courts The community held a sports day, barbeque and a fall fair and exhibition A four plex is planned for 1978 in the village, and a feed operation may move to the village in 1978 TOWN OF TROCHU Mr Raymond F+'rere gave a report for the Town of Trochu He noted that the population of the town is now 814, which is a substantial increase from 1976 He reviewed new businesses which opened in the town in 1977 and noted there are now 4 doctors and one dentist in Trochu A new sewage lagoon is in operation and an up -date of the water system is underway A new residential subdivision is to be opened up in 1978 He also reviewed the various projects underway under the NIP program, including the tennis court camp kitchen, drop in center Work has been done on the swimming pool and street lights installed at the intersection of Highway 21 and Secondary Road 585 There are 4 new councillors and the town anticipate a steady increase in population in 1978 VILLAGE OF ACME There were no official representatives from the Village of Acme, but Mr Art Taylor noted that the Meadow Lark Manor in Acme is filled to capicity and consideration is been given to an addition There are hopes for a new curling rink He also noted that the new sewage lagoon is in operation VILLAGE OF CARBON There were no official representatives from the Village of Carbon, but Mr Daun Buyer noted that the new lagoon has been completed, and the village hopesto proceed with residential subdivisions on the island, but are being held back because of lack of water supply for that area He reviewed projects undertaken under the NIP program The population has increased and there are no residential lots available for sale I c H K171 MEETING OF LOCAL GOVERNING OFFICIALS, FRIDAY JANUARY 20th 1978 P 3 VILLAGE OF TORRINGTON There were no official representatives from the Village, but Mr Art Bauer noted that there are 11 or 12 trailers located in the new trailer park The population is increasing The building for the new arena has been delivered and will be constructed in the spring THREE HILLS SCHOOL DIVISIO Mr Jack Benedict reported He noted there are 3 new a balanced budget for 1978 teachers is slow, but hope Closure of certain schools has not been solved V on the School Division activities trustees The Board anticipate The negotiations with the this matter will be settled soon is a problem which to date ELNORA HOSPITAL Mr Dave Wagstaff noted that there is an increase in admissions to the hospital, there were 27 births and 12 deaths in 1977 Out patient visits totalled 2200 There is a new doctor for a total of 4 using the hospital facilities The joint planning committee is still working on the future plans for the hospital Mr Wagstaff noted that the Provincial Government funds many projects which do not appear to be as important as hospital care for people, but the hospitals are still forced into a deficit position because of the amount of the provincial government grants, and lack of government assistance THREE HILLS HOSPITAL Mr Hugh Sommerville noted there are now 4 doctors in Three Hills and were 4 available all during 1977 This made a considerable difference to the work carried on in the hospital during 1977 There were 292 more admissions in 1977, 38 births and 7116 out patient visits, most of which were for x -ray and lab work Mr Sommerville noted that in addition to the 38 births in the area, there were 32 marriages and 34 deaths TROCHU HOSPITAL Mr Ron Hepburn reported regarding the Trochu Hospital In June of 1977 the new extension was opened There are - extended care beds and � active beds There are 27 patients Four doctors use the hospital facilities The x -ray facilities and lab work facilities have been greatly improved The Board expresses gratitude to the Linden Ambulance volunteers and noted it is a great pleasure to work with them KNEEHILL AMBULANCE SOCIETY Mr Ferguson reported on the ambulance activities for 1977 There were 227 calls and 1990 volunteer hours spent running the service The financial position of the Society is good and Mr Ferguson reviewed briefly the financial report He noted that a memorial plaque had been purchased to record the names of persons in whose memorary donations to the Ambulance Service had been made This plagt}e will be erected in the M D Office The biggest problem facing the society is collection of accounts Mr Ferguson expressed the thanks and appreciation of the Board to the volunteers for the dedicated effort put in to the operaton of the service DRUMHELLER HEALTH UNIT Mr Berdahl reviewed the operation of the Health Unit for 1977, and noted the biggest increase in costs was for power and natural gas Salaries are being negotiated on a regional basis and will be attempting to stay within the 6% guideline However a problem is arising because of the 9% increase awarded to nurses by the courts and upheld;, by the provincial government There is also a problem i 4W APVA Awl- %W C� ■_ .OINEL LOCAL GOVERNING OFFICIALS Nlrh'li1VG FRIDAY JANUARY 20th, 1978 P 4 in filling positions on the staff He reviewed the work being carried on by the Health Unit and noted that thT srtgaa�ita cost for this area is about $14 00 which is verage for the province The Health Unit is providing better and more services all the time The two biggest problems are with garbage collection and butcher shops The strict regulations enacted by the Province for these two operations are causing a lot of hardships and in some areas forcing the shut down of small town butcher shops, and costing municipalities a lot of money to operate a sanitary land fill site which meets provincial regulations AUXILIARY HOSPITAL AND NURSING HOME Mr Bauer reported regarding the Mountain View Kneehill Auxiliary Hospital and Nursing Home There are 50 beds in the auxiliary hospital and a long waiting list There are 40 beds in the nursing home with a longer waiting list We require more beds in Kneehill area Salary negotiations are underway and it is hoped to stay within the 6% guideline There were a lot of new members appointed to the board this year due to the elections last fall Mr K Wright of Three Hills is acting as Chairman this year, and Mr Bruce Freeman from Didsbur,y is Vice Chairman The proposed split of the Mountview and Kneehill areas into two separate districts is still being reviewed MUNICIPAL DISTRICT OF KNEEHILL #48 Mr Brown reported on tYe Kneehill Sanitary Land Fill Committee and the operation of the land fill site in 1977 It was noted that the land fill will be moved shortly to a new site just south of the Town of Three Hills The site does cause problems, and the possibility of a different system using dump boxes and a compactor truck is being looked at This system would move the garbage out of the Kneehill area to a Regional Land Fill Site located perhaps in the Drumheller area or in the Calgary area Mr Brown also reviewed the activites of the Eastern Region Committee of Calgary Regional Planning Commission After final approval of the new Planning Act this committee will again meet to review the Preliminary Regional Plan as it affects the eastern region of the Planning Commission area He noted that he represents the M D of Kneehill on this committee and Mr Ken Wright from the Town of Three Hills was appointed to represent the towns and villages of the area Mr Brown then reviewed the activities of the M D in 1977 He noted that the Provincial Government had advertised for tenders to pave Secondary Road 585 west of Three Hills the access road into Swalwell and a portion c,f road going through the Village of Linden He also reviewed the recent decision made by council regarding allottment of the rural population for recreation purposes Mr Dave Wagstaff left the meeting at this time Mr Brown noted there is a possibility of having Highway 27 east paved in 1978, noted the tremendous increase in oil and gas activity in the area, and noted that employees had been granted a 6% increase for 1978 DR ALLAN WARRACK was then requested to speak He congratulated the convenors of the meeting, and noted he had always received assistance and friendship from the retired secretary, G G Kingi, and hoped for the continued success of this type of meeting `j V.� LOCAL GOVERNING OFFICIALS MEETING JANUARY 20th, 1978 P 5 He also extended congratulations to the old and new councillors and board members Dr Warrack noted that four new senior citizen manors were opened in 1977 and there are plans for one at Torrington and one possibly at Beisker in the future The problems being encountered by the farmers were noted and he also noted that tough negotiations are underway with the U S A with regard to trade barriers and sale of gas to the States Labor negotiations will probably create problems in 1978 The rural gas program is progressing nicely and the project is approximately 2 /3rds completed for the entire province MR GORDON TAYLOR then spoke He also expressed thanks for the continuation of these meetings as he finds them a great help to him He noted that there are two bills before the Legislature now regarding disposition of property after marriage breakdown and he is attempting to obtain the feeling of the people regarding these bills He also noted that there is great concern expressed about the centralization of schools It was originally brought into effect to provide better schooling, but now it appears it is being done to keep down costs The proposed closure of the school at Carbon is causing alot of concern for the parents Another area of concern is hospitalization, and the need for more auxiliary and nursing home beds It is hoped that this problem will receive more attention in the coming year Another concern of the people is the rising cost of power and natural gas, and he noted that the Utilities Board is looking at the problem, but these increases appear to be necessary to ensure that power will be available to future generations Mr Taylor then reviewed briefly the reasons behind the choice of site for the Red Deer River Dam This site will have the effect of reducing erosion of the river banks, will stabilize the flow of water and will reclaim many areas of land all along the river In doing so,however 5z sections of good farm land will be flooded The cost will be about $52 million MR STAN SCHUMACHER then spoke He expressed thanks for the meeting He noted the federal government is not putting through much legislation at this time, and appears to be waiting for an election The farm problems were briefly reviewed MR GORDON TOWERS then spoke He reviewed the proposed payout from the Western Grain Stabilation Program and noted it would probably be paid out some time in the summer He reviewed farm problems also and noted the farm debt has increased in 5 years to 8 5 million The farm community is in jeodardy Mr Towers also noted that the federal deficit is increasing and pressure must be exerted on the senior government to cut down expenditures Mr Towers noted that the boundaries of the Red Deer Constitutenc,y will be enlarged GOLDEN HILLS LODGE Mr G Berdahl spoke about the operation of the lodge in 1977 and again noted the largest increase in costs are for power and natural gas There are 47 residents at the lodge Wage negotiations were completed sucessfully recently and a 25� per hour increase was allowed The Lodge is run in a very successful manner due to the efficient matron and good staff co- operation Mr Alex Cunningham, Utility Officer for the M D Kneehill spoke briefly regarding natural gas installation in the rural area and reviewed the two sewer installations undertaken'I IN N LOCAL GOVERNING OFFICIALS MEETING JANUARY 20th,1978 by the M D , one in the hamlet of Huxley and one in the hamlet of Ruarkville He also noted a study is being undertaken for a sewer system in Swalwell He also reviewed the Ruarkville replot undertaken in connection with the installation of the sewer system There was brief discussion with Dr Warrack regarding the need for calling for public tenders for such projects in order to qualify for government grants and it was agreed that a letter be sent to him outlining this problem The meeting was then open for questions Questions were asked about the sale of gas to the United States and various trade problems with the United States The need for more nursing home and auxiliary hospital beds was, again brought up A request for paving Secondary Road 575 from Carbon to Drumheller was also discussed There was discussion with regard to the split of the Mountain View Kneehill Auxiliary Hospital Board area Mr Gerry Wilson requested the meeting to give consideration to the problem which is developing in the schools because of the lower drinking age The problem is working its way down into the junior high schools, and perhaps it is time to re- examine the age of majority Dr Warrack spoke briefly regarding the age of majority and noted he did not agree with the idea of increasing the age of majority, but did agree it was worth reviewing the situation More and more problems appear to be developing because of the drinking in the schools, etc Mr Taylor noted that 70% of the people who had discussed this problem with him were opposed to raising the age of majority or the drinking age, but perhaps an education program must be undertaken in an attempt to resolve this problem There was further discussion regarding this problem There was brief discussion with regard to the allocation of the rural population for recreational purposes It was agreed that the next meeting of local governing officials be scheduled for the 3rd Friday in January, 1979 - January 19th, 1979, Mr Buyer moved the meeting do now adjourn Carried Time of Adjournment -- Approximately-5- pproximately 5 0 4141- ----------- P 6