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By Justine Kelsie

Moment of silence held for Humboldt crash victims: city council meeting wrap-up

Apr 9, 2018 | 9:50 PM

The Grande Prairie City Council meeting on Monday started on a more solemn note than usual.

Following the regular singing of O Canada, Mayor Bill Given called for a moment of silence for the victims of the bus crash in Saskatchewan. You could have heard a pin drop as Councillors, staff, and attendees of the meeting bowed their heads for the fifteen people who lost their lives on Friday.

“A tragedy like this touches everyone across Canada. I think it is something that may stir up emotions and memories as we are no stranger to having tragedies with youth in our city,” said Given following the meeting.

Given encourages those in the Swan City who are struggling with their emotions to reach out for help.

Other highlights:

Mayor’s Opioid Task Force
Two city staff members will be added to the Mayor’s Opioid Task Force. Council voted to add a Community Social Development member and administrative staff to the group of community organizations working to combat the opioid crisis.

During the delegation portion of the meeting, a resident brought up his concerns related to opioids in the city. His concern was regarding mobile consumption sites. The city received the presentation for information.

Mud, Parking, and Noise
Another Grande Prairie resident brought his concerns to the city about mud being brought in from larger trucks travelling into the city on 108 Street.

He was also reiterating his problems with parking on the street his house is on. According to the man, he had brought up the issue in year’s past and had never had the city respond. 

Noise was also a complaint brought up which included loud trucks and exhaust. Given says this is a common complaint for this time of year as people start to open their windows to let fresh air in. He says, typically, the issue is noisy traffic or the train. Recently, Edmonton has started a process to measure noise in their city and Given says they haven’t looked at this specific equipment. He says noise is on their radar and they continue to look at ways to combat complaints like these.  

The Cairn on the Boulevard
After previous extensions to a development permit, the owners of the Cairn on the Boulevard received another extension for landscaping and hard surfacing. The Landscaping work is scheduled to be done by the end of July 2018. The curbing, lines, and hard surfacing will need to be done by July 31, 2019.

Council decided to not hold securities for the landscaping project in hopes it will help the owner get the work done. 
 

by Justine Kelsie