Highlights from Grande Prairie City Council’s Monday meeting

Council approved zoning changes for 1.5 hectares of land near the water and wastewater treatment plant to allow for a new wastewater lift station. This is meant to provide options for maintenance at the plant and the main wastewater line. The land had been zoned under Muskoseepi Park. The approval stipulates that trails must be maintained. Trees must also be kept where possible.

Council heard a presentation from Helping Hands and the Northreach Society on food security. The delegation says its Northwestern Alberta Hub had more than 4,000 pantry visits as of August 10. It supports more than 1,200 people each month. Since January, more than 100,000 pounds of food have been donated to the hub. That included more than 17,000 pounds of potatoes, 3,400 pounds of carrots, and 1,850 pounds of infant formula. Local businesses also donated under a Food Rescue initiative. The hub was also buying about $10,000 worth of fresh and frozen food. The presentation says this means that warehouse and refrigeration space are still needed.

Council also heard a presentation from Grande Prairie Live Theatre. The delegation told council that since getting $40,000 in emergency funding in August, it has raised $25,000 through donations and sponsorships. The money from the city also led to $10,000 in support from the County of Grande Prairie. The delegation says the organization has also put together a surplus budget. It also had to eliminate its technical director position.

Council voted against a bylaw change that would have allowed a six-storey hotel on the south side of the existing Four Points by Sheraton hotel, located across from the Eastlink Centre. The current limit is four storeys. Residents who live across the street from the site on 66 Avenue wrote letters in opposition and came to council to speak against the idea. They cited concerns like losing the view of the sky, hotel guests parking on 66 Avenue, and more traffic. Council approved a motion to have staff report back to a city committee on future road access in that area.

Council approved having city staff write a resolution on facilities for cadet groups that would go to the 2027 convention of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities. It would call for federal funding for building and maintaining such facilities that are not already part of the defence department. This grew out of a discussion at the previous meeting about a planned expansion at D Company Armouries.

A delegation from the Grande Prairie branch of the Royal Canadian Legion did a poppy presentation with the mayor and council. This year’s campaign is well underway, with poppy boxes set up at various businesses. Remembrance Day is next Wednesday, November 11.

Council’s next meeting is set for November 16.

by Curtis Galbraith