Bonnyville News

Over $200,000 will be coming to the Bonnyville-Cold Lake-St. Paul area in the form of funding for food banks and food security programs.

More often than not, municipalities opt to rely on volunteer fire services because they simply can’t afford to pay career firefighters. 'When the backbone of an entire industry is volunteerism, we need to do more as municipalities to make an incentive for people to be volunteers,' says the Regional Fire Chief of the BRFA

This evening, Thursday, April 20, there will be a temporary closure of emergency department services at the Bonnyville Health Centre due to an unexpected physician shortage.

‘I always tell my team a positive outcome is when we find a person and we bring them home to their family. Whether they come home alive or not, we are happy that they are coming home. We brought closure to the family,’ says Bonnyville Search and Rescue president.

The MD of Bonnyville’s Public Safety Department presented a Consolidated Public Safety Bylaw that combined several of the municipality’s public safety bylaws while introducing new regulations around changing technologies and the controlled substance cannabis.

While the last few years have posed continuous challenges for businesses who are forced to do more with less, hope is on the horizon, says Bonnyville and District Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Serina Parsons. 

The MD of Bonnyville council has decided to keep its one-time $2,500 bursary for qualifying victims of fire through its Financial Assistance for Victims of Fire Policy. However, the MD policy was subject to several amendments that were approved on March 14.

After receiving feedback from MD of Bonnyville ratepayers following updates to a long-standing Fire Suppression and Cost Recovery Policy, council may have found a compromise that won’t leave residents paying a hefty bill after a fire.

An updated Weight Restriction and Road Ban Bylaw is in effect for the MD of Bonnyville. Those in the agriculture industry will face the largest adjustment as the road ban exemption has been removed for agricultural vehicles licensed and registered for highway use. However, farm equipment remains exempt under the new bylaw.

'Obviously, it's a little sad right now just because we lost the game, but tomorrow is a new day. The next day is a new day, and the sun is going to come up tomorrow,' says Matteo Giampa, the Pontiacs' centre forward