County of Paintearth

No. 18

BULLETIN NO. 503

WATER SURVEYS – Please remit your completed water surveys by MARCH 31, 2010. A signed expression of interest does not constitute an agreement or bind the signatory, the landowner, in any way and is only for planning purposes. Please contact the County Office if you are a Ratepayer and did not receive a water survey.

The following information is to provide a summary of County activities for the period January/February 2010. Further explanations or details can be obtained by contacting your Councillor or the County Office at 403-882-3211 or 1-888-882-3156.
Aggregate Crushing & Stockpiling – Tender Award – Arjon Construction Ltd. was awarded the contract at the tendered price of $2.24/tonne ($560,000) for the Aggregate Crushing & Stockpiling in the Biggs Pit S½ 27-34-11 W4.
RCMP Enhanced Detachment Clerk Position – The County approved to contribute 50% towards the cost of an RCMP Enhanced Detachment Clerk Position for the Castor Satellite Office.  The remaining funding will be split with the Town of Castor contributing 25% and the Town of Coronation contributing 25%.
2010 Municipal Sponsorship Program – Council authorized the County to participate in a Municipal Sponsorship program grant application for Coronation and Halkirk under the Alberta Municipal Affairs Sponsorship Program.  The Town of Coronation will be the designated managing partner of the Campground Kitchen Upgrade/New Washrooms ($5,964.60) project and the Village of Halkirk designated the managing partner of the Playground Upgrade ($13,917.40) project.
Equipment for Sale – Council approved the following equipment be offered for sale:  Unit 9085 (service truck); Unit #8065 (pick up), Unit #7040 (homemade trailer), Unit #1030 (scraper), Unit #2500 (2005 grader); Unit #2400 (2002 grader) and Unit #2600 (2005 grader) at an upcoming Ritchie Bros. Sale.
Equipment Purchases – Council moved the purchase of the following equipment:  two 160M Graders from Finning Canada Ltd. - $342,402.00 per grader; pull type packer from Handy Hitch - $17,157.00; air compressor from Atlas Copco - $26,775.00; service body from Boden Fabricating & Metal Products - $60,791.85; flat deck trailer from PJ Trailers - $27,712.80; Fuel Tank Management System from Bar W Petroleum & Electric - $103,931.10; 2009 Caterpillar D8T Track Type Tractor - $677,803.35; 2010 Pickup from Drumheller Chrysler - $34,240.50 and a single axle from Freight Linder at the quoted price of $93,019.50.
Royal Canadian Legion – Council approved a donation of $500.00 to the Royal Canadian Legion, Branch 119, Castor, Alberta towards the cost of refurbishing the Cenotaph in Castor.
Grade 5/6 Social Studies Class – Council will host a pizza party for the Theresetta Grade 5/6 Social Studies Class as a thank you for presenting their posters to Council on their innovative class project on their vision of development and naming the County Subdivision.
Bylaw 595-10 – Council granted first reading to County Bylaw 595-10, a Bylaw for the purpose of providing an Area Structure Plan of Crowfoot Crossing, in the County of Paintearth No. 18.  An Open House was held on February 25, 2010 at the County Administration Building.  A Public Hearing for Bylaw 595-10, An Area Structure Plan of Crowfoot Crossing, will be held on March 9, 2010 at 1:15 p.m. at the County Administration Building.
County Promotional CD’s – Council authorized purchase of 2,500 copies of a promotional CD on the County to distribute during the various upcoming Homecoming Celebrations throughout the County.
Veterans Memorial Highway Association – The County will participate in establishing a website that would link to municipal websites along the Veterans Memorial Highway Association to assist in the promotion and use of Highway 36.  A new Veterans Memorial Highway Association brochure was assembled by L. Davidson, PEPS Development Officer. 
County Council Meetings – Council selected the following dates for upcoming County Council Meetings:  March 9, 2010, March 31, 2010, April 6, 2010, April 20, 2010, May 4, 2010 and May 18, 2010 commencing at 9:00 a.m.

PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT
Advance Notice Required!  Many people inquire about timelines for developments, home building, or simply putting up a shop or barn.  The answer varies depending on the project and here are a few examples:
a) Resident A wants to build a house on a vacant quarter and establish a homestead site.  As single family dwellings are a “permitted use” in the Ag District, the development permit can be issued to them within a day of receiving it.
b) Resident B wants to build a house in a yard where there already is a residence, making this either a replacement home, or an additional family residence.  Our LUB states this is discretionary, so therefore it goes for review in front of our MPC – the Municipal Planning Commission.  As we generally meet once a month that would be the longest period one would wait, depending on when it was submitted.
c) Farmer C wants to subdivide his farm site from the rest of the quarter and sell it as they are moving to town.  The subdivision process takes approximately 3 months barring any unforeseen complications.
For all of your development, planning, or preparing to build ideas, feel free to call into the Office to discuss which permits are needed or not, and to ensure your project gets going in the right direction.  Asking twice and doing once would be a good enough reason for anyone!

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT REPORT
Larry Davidson, Economic Development Officer
I am pleased to announce, that Paintearth Economic Partnership Society recently received funding from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development’s Rural Community Adaptation Grant in the amount of $102,000.00.  The purpose of the funding is to assist PEPS with the development of a business attraction and retention strategy.  We are currently reviewing the consultant proposals and hope to make our selection by mid-March.
Our new website is very close to completion.  The main focus for the new site is to assist businesses with relocating to our region.  Check us out at www.painteartheps.com. We will still have our other URL at www.paintearth.ab.ca.We have also registered a new domain for the County of Paintearth’s Crowfoot Crossing industrial park at www.crowfootcrossing-countypaintearth.ca
On a final note; the County of Paintearth has approved funding to distribute our promotional videos to participants of the Community Centennials over the next three years.  This is an inexpensive way to attract people back to our region, or lure other family and friends who may see the videos.  If you have a business idea or need assistance, please give me a call at 403-882-3211 to arrange a confidential business development meeting.

VARIABLE RATE TECHNOLOGY WORKSHOP
Hosted by:  Battle River Research Group & Chinook Applied Research Association

Cost:  $10/person includes lunch.
Register by Monday, March 8, 2010. Phone 1-866-828-6774 or 780-582-7308 (BRRG) or 403-664-3777 (CARA).  Speakers: Doug Mackay, Consultant, Introduction to Precision Agriculture, GPS; Warren Bills, Geofarm, GIS and Case Studies to Implement; Ted Darling, Consultant, Economics of VRT; Jay Bruggencate, Farmers’ Edge, Remote Sensing and Case Studies to Implement.

Cost:  $135.00 for both days. To register please call 1-800-387-6030.

SHELTERBELT TROUBLE SHOOTING
PLANNING, PRUNING, TREE DISEASE & PEST ID

Wednesday, March 24, 2010 - 10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
Coronation Recreation Centre
Cost: $15.00 includes lunch. To register please contact Quinton Beaumont at 403-882-3211 or 1-888-882-3156.

CROP PEST & DISEASE UPDATE
Monday, March 29, 2010 – 10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
Alliance Community Hall
Cost:  $10.00 includes lunch.
To register please contact Lindsey Catherwood at 780-384-4100 or Quinton Beaumont at 403-882-3211 or 1-888-882-3156.

FROM THE OFFICES OF PAINTEARTH COMMUNITY ADULT LEARNING COUNCIL (PCALC)

To register for courses please call Paintearth Community Adult Learning Council at 403-578-3817 or 403-882-2080 or stop by one of our offices, in Castor’s Town Office or in the Provincial Building basement in Coronation.

Scrap Booking-paper Piecing, Coronation School – Wednesday & Thursday, Mar. 10 & 11, 5:30-9:00 p.m. $34 and Gus Wetter School – Wednesday & Thursday, Mar. 17 & 18, 5:30-8:45 p.m. $28.00

Basic Genealogy – Theresetta School, Castor – Thursday, Mar. 11, 6:30-8:30 p.m. $14.00

Standard First Aid Level A or C, CPR & AED – Saturday & Sunday, Mar. 13 & 14 Level C $163.00 – Level A $121

Belly Dancing, Castor – Taster – Mar. 10 is free – Wednesday, Mar. 17 – Apr. 11, 7–8 p.m. Theresetta School, Castor - $28.00 and Coronation School – Thursday, Mar. 18 – Apr. 1, 7 – 8 p.m. $28.00

Soap Making – Gus Wetter School, Castor – Thursday, Mar. 18 6:30-8:45 p.m. $19.00

Advanced Photo Editing – Castor Internet Access Centre – Thursday, Apr. 1, 8, 15, 22, 6-8 p.m. $53.00 EB $47.40

Acrylic Painting – Gus Wetter School, Castor – Wednesday, Apr. 7, 16, 21, 28, 6:30-8:30 p.m. $84.00 EB Mar. 24 $75.60

Knife Making – 6 miles south of Stettler – Saturday, Apr. 10, 17, 24, 8 a.m.-6 p.m., Register by Mar. 26 $225.00

CROWFOOT CROSSING … Remembering Our Past, Building Our Future

Crowfoot Crossing is currently being built and developed for both commercial and light industrial businesses. This development will offer exceptional exposure as it is located on the Official High Load Corridor (Highway 36) and the Rocky Mountain Corridor (Highway 12). For more information regarding this remarkable opportunity, feel free to contact Tarolyn Peach, Chief Administrative Officer at 403-882-3211.