Council Clips – August 17, 2021
Boil Water Advisory Incident Report
Council heard an update from EPCOR and administration summarizing the recent boil water advisory.
On July 29, as EPCOR brought new water infrastructure into service, they began receiving calls regarding sediment in the water. Alberta Health Services (AHS) issued a Boil Water Advisory for Canmore, Dead Man’s Flats, and parts of Harvie Heights, which was communicated promptly through the Town of Canmore’s and EPCOR’s communications channels. EPCOR developed and began executing plan for flushing the 70km of water lines (~60% of whole system) the next day. Five potable water locations were established throughout the community, and pumphouse 1 was shut down to avoid pushing sediment into areas of the system with clean water. Infrastructure in certain areas of town is sensitive to low water pressure, resulting in a temporary loss of water. EPCOR flushed areas in phases starting with zones at the highest elevation in Canmore. Many staff from the Town of Canmore, EPCOR, and AHS worked around the clock to address this issue, including six EPCOR crews working 24hrs/day, and AHS providing 24hr turnaround on water test results. After 12 days under the boil water advisory, on Aug. 9 the last impacted area of town had the advisory lifted. Next steps include an incident investigation, determination of costs, and a report back to Council and the community. Until then, residents can read more about emergency preparedness and sign up for alerts at Emergency Preparedness
New Cultural Advisory Committee
A new Cultural Advisory Committee will replace the current Public Art Committee. In addition to supporting the public art program, the new committee will have added responsibilities to help steward the Cultural Master Plan into the future. At the annual organizational meeting in October, the committee will be formally appointed and the current Public Art Committee will be disbanded. As well, the Public Art Policy was updated to provide criteria for future site selection as well as creating a sustainable funding model by increasing the per capita annual contribution to the Art Trust Fund from $3 to $5 to ensure resources for the ongoing maintenance and repair of the public art collection. The Reserves Policy was also updated to ensure the two policies are aligned. Information on the new committee and the Public Art Policy can be found here Cultural Advisory Committee
Open Space & Trails Plan Dog Park Update
To improve accessibility to off-leash parks for the community, Council amended the Off-Leash Dog Parks section of the 2015 Open Space & Trails Plan to reduce the minimum distance from a residential or commercial property from 120m to 20m and change the guideline for sizes for classifications of off-leash dog parks for Dog Runs (up to 0.4ha in size), Neighbourhood Parks (0.4 to 1.0ha in size), and Destination Parks (more than 1.0ha in size). For more information on current dog parks, visit Off Leash Dog Parks
Truth and Reconciliation Day Sept. 30
Council recently approved September 30, Truth and Reconciliation Day, as a designated general holiday. Because this is a new designation, the 2021 budget does not include any funding for a commemorative event on this day. Council approved $18,000 from the General Operating Reserve for a Truth and Reconciliation Day commemorative event and signage.
Quarry Lake Park Commemorative Plaque
Council approved a request from the board of the Rocky Mountain Heritage Foundation for the placement of a plaque at Quarry Lake Park to commemorate the significant contributions of the late Mr. Milner in the acquisition and long-term protection of the park. The foundation will purchase the plaque and related materials. Stanley A. Milner (1930-2021) was the primary founder and financial supporter of the Rocky Mountain Heritage Foundation (originally the Quarry Lake Heritage Foundation, previously the Quarry Lake Park Society) in l999-2000. Through the creation of the Society/Foundation, and subsequent personal funding of the acquisition of the lake and lands surrounding the lake, Mr. Milner played a critical role in assuring the long-term protection of the Quarry Lake Park lands. The lake was originally created by Canmore Mines, led by Gerry Stephenson.
Council also:
· Amended the Designated Officers Bylaw to add the new position of town solicitor to section 3.
· Granted a one-year extension for the endorsement of the plan of the subdivision of Silvertip Block 3, 10 and Railway Court
· Amended the Subdivision & Development Appeal Board (SDAB) bylaw to appropriately address matters regarding withdrawing a request for consideration to the SDAB and the refunding of fees. The new bylaw can be found at Subdivision & Development Appeal Board (SDAB)
The agenda package contains more details on all of these items and it can be found at https://canmore.ca/documents/4709-2021-08-17-council-agenda-regular
