Adam Jackson / Black Press
Airport apron to be rebuilt
The Town of Stettler has applied for — and received — a grant from the Province of Alberta for the full cost of repairing and reconstructing the apron at the Stettler Airport.
“It’s part of our capital program for this year so it’s been in the planning works since late 2010,” said assistant CAO Greg Switenky.
The estimated cost for the repair and reconstruction is $547,000.
The replacement will be 100 per cent covered by the provincial government through an Alberta Transportation grant.
“There are very few provincial programs that do 100 per cent funding so obviously we’re thrilled to get it,” said Switenky.
The Town of Stettler is also trying to get more bang for their buck. They have been approved for a $688,000 grant from Alberta Transportation, which is well above the actual cost of the project.
Council is looking into doing more work on the airport, but from early communications, it does not seem like that is going to happen, says Switenky.
“At this stage of the game, the province is saying no. They’re saying if you only need $547,000 that’s all you’re getting,” said Switenky.
Plans to build path around hospital
The Town of Stettler is well into the planning stages of constructing a series of paths that go through and around the Stettler Hospital and Care Centre.
With a projected cost of $100,386, the town is pleased with how the plans are coming along.
“It costs a lot more than you think to put these paths in,” said Switenky. “With a lot of them, you have to make sure that the ground is suitable before you put the path in.”
The proposed path will connect with the existing path on the east side of the hospital and will travel along 47th Avenue, then 51st Street then it will follow Highway 12.
“We have a master pathway plan that foresees where we would like to put pathways, but with every capital budget, we would approve maybe $100,000 worth of pathway and look at a bunch of pathways and ask where the best place for the paths would be.”
Council is looking at this as an option for the 2011 program or possibly the 2012 program.
The pathway plan will be discussed again in early fall.
Lane paving problem
Council has denied four south end condo-owners tax support to pave a laneway behind their homes.
The laneway, between 39th Avenue and 40th Avenue, is currently gravel and is the only way that the residents have to get into their homes.
“When the developers built the condominium development, they decided not to go through the expense of building the cul-de-sac and left it so that they did not have front access to the units,” said Switenky. “Basically what they’re saying is that since the Town of Stettler has all paved streets, they want a paved laneway as well”
The Town of Stettler’s policy with paving is that you cannot start and stop paving midway on a lane.
So if the applicants wanted to pave that lane, they would have to pave the entire area, which affects 27 other dwellings.
If they were to do this, they would have to apply for local improvement and gain signatures from two thirds of the affected property owners and have them agree to share the cost.
“They have up to 20 years to pay the cost if they do that and it can be taken off of their taxes with interest,” said Switenky.
The major problem with having it paved is that if development eventually happens on the east side, services would require the paved lane to be dug up.