Photo by Curtis Galbraith.

By Curtis Galbraith

City Hall

Highlights from the Grande Prairie City Council meeting held Monday

Jan 11, 2022 | 6:00 AM

Highlights from Grande Prairie City Council’s first meeting of 2022.

Councillor Gladys Blackmore brought up some issues with snow removal. She says in her neighbourhood, Ivy Lake, residential streets were cleared on January 3 but 104 Avenue, a Priority 2 road because it is a bus route, was what she called “a terrible mess.” City crews usually clear Priority 1, 2, and 3 roads while contractors take care of residential streets. City administration says it can look at ideas on how the work is divided among city and hired crews. City administration says three snowfalls in a week, plus all the snow, meant snow clearing operations fell behind schedule.

Blackmore also brought up complaints about 68 Avenue being used as a drag strip. She asked administration if there was some way to reassure the people who live along that road that the city was doing something about this. Administration says it knows this has been going on and has been communicating this to Enforcement Services.

Council heard a presentation from a designated river service business owner unhappy with the city’s bylaw governing such businesses. Mary Dumais with Dedicated Designated Drivers says her business is the only one complying with all the regulations set out in the bylaw out of 10 operating in Grande Prairie. Her concerns include confusion about whether a physical office must be in place, drivers that do not have a Class 4 and chauffer’s license, and proper insurance. Dumais also said there was a lack of enforcement of the bylaw. City council agreed to have city administration meet with Dumais to discuss her concerns.

Pirates Fastball made a couple of requests to city council. It asked to have some upgrades done that would convert the Parkside diamonds to exclusive use for younger players. The estimated cost would be around $26,000. The Pirates are also asking that Diamonds 1 and 2 at South Bear be set aside exclusively for fastball, something the presenter told council was the intent when they were first built. The Pirates also talked about more ambitious plans like establishing a training facility. The closest one currently is in Saskatoon. The Pirates say they currently have 50 active men’s players and that girls’ participation grew from 40 players to 100 in a year. There are also plans to launch a women’s league in 2022 and a boy’s league has just been launched. City council asked administration to compile a report of having diamonds devoted to fastball, the cost, and the potential impacts on other users. Council also asked administration to look at having a youth rate for renting outdoor fields and diamonds and the potential financial impacts in time for 2023 budget talks. Councillor Dylan Bressey says the Fees and Charges Bylaw includes a youth rate for ice rental but not for outdoor fields. Council also referred the training facility idea to the Regional Recreation Committee for more study.

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