Mayor Bruce Decoux called a regular council meeting to order on Tuesday, August 20th, at the Municipal offices in Coleman. Here are a few of the notable issues covered:
CAO Report
CAO Myron Thompson gave a report regarding to activities in the Municipal office.
Due to the fact that last week was Albert Hedrick's last as Director of Protective and Community Services, recruitment is presently being made for that position.
A sufficient amount of applications have been received. Advertisements are also out for the Human Resource Administrator position.
“Its been very busy with processes relative to the disaster recovery program.
We're also meeting with Alberta Environment tomorrow to review some of the sites and to gather some additional information.”
Japanese visitors
On August 12th, the Hakuto Junior High school from Japan visited and toured the area.
The community float was entered in the Pincher Creek Parade and was received with positive reaction, winning 2nd prize.
Thompson also indicated that “The swimming pool will be closed for the season after Sept. 1. So Sunday Sept. 1st is the last day.”
Fire and rescue crews have experienced a high number of calls in August. They have received 17 calls as of this date.
Tax Penalty Relief and Waiver
This waiver was to be put in place so that those having trouble paying their taxes due to the floods would be given additional consideration. Mayor Decoux stated that “There are some who have paid and given reasons, some that didn't pay and are blaming it on the flood and some who just haven't paid” A motion was passed to include only those affected directly by the flood.
Credit Card Policy
This policy was to be put in place to bring accountability and consistency to the council regarding credit card charges. Councillor Siegbert Gail questioned if the said amount was enough. Councillor Brian Gallant indicated that it was only “meant to cover incidentals.”
The motion was carried.
Pass Powderkeg update
A discussion followed of a request for a letter of support for the development of the Pass Powderkeg Ski resort into a multi-season resort. “This does support our tourism initiative” said Coucillor Gallant, citing the spike in skier visits from 3000 to 15,000 as a major contributor. The motion was carried.
Meeting Date Schedule
Next on the agenda was a discussion to determine if changes needed to be made for the meeting schedule between the months of September to December 2013. The original plan is to have Council meetings on the 1st and 3rd Tuesdays with a scheduled GPC for 2:00 pm on the 3rd Tuesday. Councillor Andrew Saje indicated he would like them to go to two GCP's a month so “the backlog can be rectified” Councillor Gallant then stated he thought they shouldn't plan for any more meetings after Nov. 5.
A motion was carried. “Council considers the recommendation in establishing the dates for upcoming council and governance and priority meetings for the months of Sept. through to Nov. 5”
A financial report was given for the period ending August 15, 2013. Bylaws 872-Land Use Bylaw Amendment and Bylaw 873- Borrowing Bylaw for Capital Purchases, were both carried.
Towards the end of the meeting, each Council member gave their individual council member reports.
