With the costs to replace an aging fire truck running at more than $700,000, the Town of Stettler council is hopeful that a grant offsetting a quarter of the cost will be approved.
It was revealed at the Aug. 5 town council meeting that the County of Stettler and the town jointly applied to the Alberta Community Partnership (ACP) grant program for the fire truck funding, which if successful will see the government cover $250,000 of the estimated $709,000 cost.
The rest of the truck’s cost will be picked up by the town, and was factored into this year’s budget.
The new truck will replace a 25-year-old fire truck currently used by the Stettler Regional Fire Department.
A second application to the grant program was made by the county, and if successful, will see a four-mile stretch of roadway south of the town paved, near Township Road 394 and Range Road 195.
The town renewed its five-year regional fire dispatch agreement with City of Red Deer. The agreement renews the previous contract with some minor increases in cost and insurance coverage values, but otherwise remains the same, council was told.
Under the agreement, the City handles emergency 911 and E911 calls and dispatches fire trucks, additional fire support if required, contacts additional support agencies like STARS, RCMP, and contacts emergency services agencies for support where mutual aid agreements are in effect, as required.
The service is a round-the-clock, 365-days-a-year service, which is paid for by the City, who in turns hires and trains staff. In return, the town is responsible for the cost of supplying and maintaining the required radio equipment, training personnel in its use, and must provide updated and dated maps for the areas emergency services cover.
The fee in 2014 for the services is $2.05 per capita, and will rise to $2.39 per capita by 2018 under the new agreement.
Councillors to have town email addresses
Previously, if members of the Stettler council wished to list their email addresses, they had to use their own personal addresses. However, starting soon, each councillor will be provided with their own @stettler.net email address for use.
The email address remains property of the Town of Stettler and can only be accessed by council members while they remain a member of council, and can only be used for official, work-related business.
The goal behind assigning members an @stettler.net email address is for consistency and confidentiality of information purposes. As well, the town is responsible for keeping accurate and complete records of correspondence, which becomes easier when email is handled by their own servers.
Town to be represented at Communities in Bloom
Town council voted in favour of sending a representative to the national Communities in Bloom Symposium in Charlottetown, PEI, in September.
The Communities in Bloom committee chairman, Rob Spencer, and his wife will travel to the maritime community at an estimated cost of $4,464.
“Council felt it was important, with Stettler competing in the international competition, for us to be represented at the symposium,” assistant CAO Steve Gerlitz said.
The town is covering the air fare, accommodations and symposium costs from the HBC-CIB Travel and Subsistence Account from the 2014 budget.