One of the biggest events in the region last year was the 2013 municipal election. The leaders of this rapidly growing region were selected to take the wheel and drive the community into the future.
It's only been about four months since those municipal politicians were elected or re-elected, and in that short span it appears work is well under way and promises are actually being kept.
Now I know some don't care about who our leaders are or what they do, but for the sake of the 19 per cent of citizens who got off their couches and voted, I am going to update you on the status of some the election promises.
In Bonnyville many of the current councillors and Mayor Gene Sobolewski ran on the idea of better communication and cooperation between municipalities.
“The only way we're going to be able to move forward and develop is by sitting at a table with other (municipalities) and talking, and talking and talking,” Sobolewski said. “We don't have to agree on everything, it's more so about developing relationships and having a respect for one another.”
This past Wednesday, Feb. 12, town council and MD council sat down and talked. No decisions were made, but the sides sat down and talked.
The week before, Ken Hughes the Minister of Municipal Affairs, was in town and gathered leaders from Bonnyville, the MD, Cold Lake and Glendon together to talk.
Now, while no firm decisions came of any of these meetings, it has been nice to see these municipalities getting together frequently and talking.
Both the MD and Town councils have increased their communication with the provincial government of late, specifically lobbying the transportation department.
During the mayoral debate Sobolewski said one of his goals, if elected mayor, was to “re-build broken relationships” with the provincial government.
In January at an AUMA meeting Sobolewski got the ball rolling by bringing up a variety of issues with Alberta Transportation, such as wanting the province to look at reducing the speed limit on Highway 41 when coming into Bonnyville, the possibility of implementing a three-lane system along Main Street, as well as the option of handing over 54 Avenue to the province to become Highway 28 and claiming control of Main Street.
Later on in January, Bonnyville, the MD and Cold Lake were back at the table with government officials talking about the regional water issue. Apparently the government will be making an announcement on this issue in the coming weeks.
The reeve and MD councillors have also done a good job of following through on election promises.
During the All Candidates Forum in October, Rondeau also emphasized the need to develop more recreational activities as a way to entice more people to more to the MD.
“Some of the recreation opportunities I see for the next four years will include: upgrading some of our campgrounds and boat launches, building a tube run at Kinosoo Ridge, building a covered skating rink and walking trails,” said Rondeau.
The MD recently received some provincial grants to improve the Cold Lake campground, approved a $162,000 purchase for a chairlift, which will put Kinosoo Ridge on track to open a tube park next winter, and are currently advertising for builders to submit design proposals for a rink in Fort Kent.
The three new faces that took over on the Village of Glendon council are on the right path. All three came in with the idea of improving communication with the public and increasing transparency. Council will take a big step towards this promise on Feb. 27 when they host a Town Hall meeting.
So far, it appears elected officials in the region are acting on their election promises and getting to work, as the long list of stuff that needs to be done in the Lakeland grows.
