CLEARWATER COUNTY TAXPAYERS ASSOCIATION 

MEETING MINUTES 

September 14, 2017

LESLIEVILLE ELKS HALL 

1.0   Welcome and introductions

1. At 7:30 p.m. President Marianne Cole welcomed all those in attendance.  Those in attendance introduced themselves.

2.0   Approval of Agenda 

    2.  Items 6.3, 6.4 and 6.5 were added.  Pat Warkentin moved that we approve the agenda with the additions. Ron Hallahan seconded.  Carried.    

1. Minutes of the last meeting

3.   Marianne Cole read the minutes of the last meeting held June 15, 2017. Ken Qually moved that the minutes be approved as presented. Larry Titford seconded.  Carried.

1. Financial Report

4. Pat Butler read the financial report.  Pat Butler moved that the financial report by accepted as presented.  Trish Bingam seconded.  Carried.

1. Business arising from the minutes

There was CBF discussion at council and discussion concerning councillor compensation.

      5.1 Future action/page in the Western Star.  Topics for election discussion:

• No new pavement for 2 years in county
• Candidates
• Issues
• Electoral boundaries
• Debt load = individual $
• High taxes impeding business
• Crime in the county
• County roads are not being maintained.  Maintenance is not being done and is going to cost us more in the future. 

Marlene Brattberg made a motion to place 2 half page ads in the Western Star prior to the forum, on September 20 and September 27 and investigate with Daryl Parks for social media/facebook ad with a $200 limit.  Tim Hoven seconded.  Carried.

The committee to work on the ad will be Laverne Ahlstrom, Ron Hallahan, Marianne Cole and Trish Bingham (tentatively).

5.2  Election

       Candidates Forum will be held Thursday September 28 @ 7:00 p.m.  

      MC – Ken Qually moved that Marianne Cole be the MC for the forum.  Robert Brattberg seconded.  Carried.  It was discussed that we will prioritize questions so they aren’t redundant, questions from the floor and time limit on responses.  Timer will be Marlene Brattberg.  Pat Warkentin, Pat Butler and Laverne Ahlstrom will vet the questions.  Marianne Cole will draft an invitation letter to candidates to respond by Friday September 22.

1. New Business

6.1  Annual Meeting, November 9, 2017 – Guest speaker?   Trish Bingham moved that we invite the Reeve to speak at our annual meeting.  Seconded by Ken Qually.  Carried.

6.2  Councillor evaluation suggestion (Dan Warkentin)- Dan Warkentin brought up the idea of an annual performance evaluation for councilors.  Possible input from a survey on a website and feedback from groups.

6.3  Daylight Savings Time – We took an informal vote for/against Daylight Savings Time and vote was pretty much split evenly.  It was suggested to draft a letter to Jason Nixon that the issue should be put to a public vote via a provincial referendum.

6.4  Meat Inspectors/Abattoirs – There is a concern that the rules and regulations from government are discouraging business.  There needs to be cooperation between provincial and federal levels of government.  Locals have lost options to sell and buy local product.

6.5  New Tax Regulations- The county is sending a letter to the federal government with concerns.

7.0  Next meetings:  September 28 (candidates forum) @ 7:00pm, October 12 @ 7:30 and November 9 (AGM) @ 7:00.

8.0  Adjournment – Laverne Ahlstrom moved to adjourn @ 9:30pm  Merv Pidherney seconded.

                             

                             

1. Next meeting September 14 @ 7:30 pm. 

9.0 Dan Warkentin moved for adjournment @ 9:10 p.m.  Dennis Anderson seconded.

CLEARWATER COUNTY TAXPAYERS ASSOCIATION 

MEETING MINUTES 

June 15, 2017

LESLIEVILLE ELKS HALL 

1.0   Welcome and introductions

1. At 7:30 p.m. President Marianne Cole welcomed all those in attendance.  Those in attendance introduced themselves.

2.0   Approval of Agenda 

    2.  Item 6.4 was added.  There is an update on the town sewer lagoon.  The final report is due in July.  Pat Butler moved that we approve the agenda with the addition. Marion Schafer seconded.  Carried.    

1. Minutes of the last meeting

3.   Marianne Cole read the minutes of the last meeting held May 11, 2017. It was noted that on item 6.1 that Ron Leaf was at the meeting as well.  Marlene Brattberg moved that the minutes be approved as presented with a correction to 6.1 to include Ron Leaf.  Dan Warkentin seconded.  Carried.

1. Financial Report

4. Pat Butler read the financial report.  Pat Butler moved that the financial report by accepted as presented.  Al Gaetz seconded.  Carried.

1. Business arising from the minutes
1. Highlights of last Rocky Ag. Society Meeting – there was poor attendance at the meeting (only about 12 people).

1. Future action—info page in the Western Star in September- no price as of yet.

1. New Business
1. Highlights from council meetings.

 May 23, 2017 (Dan Warkentin) 

• Concerns by local contractors that county rates are too low
• County passed motion to take over 400m of industry resource road
• Report from Withrow Wastewater delegation
• Womans shelter delegation
• Council passed motion to reimburse application fee for communication tower for private use
• Recommendation passed to draft letter to Municipal affairs to request reimbursement for uncollectable school taxes.
• Council passed a motion to approve more money for new financial software
• Recommendation passed for $ 5 million operating line of credit. (Three readings in one meeting)
• Telus delegation

                             

                           June 13 (Helge Nome)

•   Approval for households to keep six chickens (no roosters)
• Sundre Forest Products/West Fraser reported problems in regards to American duties and pine beetles.
• Update of Japanese student  exchange program
• Bill Shaw Consulting presented revised draft of North Rocky Major Area Structure Plan
• New provincial electoral boundaries were discussed
• Council will not change its 2/3 majority requirement in regards to the request from the Hamlet of Withrow in regards to a municipal wastewater system.

                             

1. Major Area Structure Plan Highlights- A summary of the comments from the open house of February 16, 2017 revealed that there were 40 negative, 11 in favor and 20 other.

1. Election considerations.  Nomination deadline is September 18, 2017. Election is October 16, 2017.  Next meeting is September 14, 2017 prior to nominations of September 18, 2017.  It was discussed and decided that we would hold a candidates forum at the Elks hall on September 28, 2017.  We will finalize the details at the September 14, 2017 meeting and advertise in the paper for 2 weeks.

1. Public Input Policy.  The government has come out with a public input policy.  There is a document from Municipal Affairs called the Public Input Policy Toolkit that is 200+ pages.  The municipalities have a timeline to complete the policy.  Do other municipalities have policies we can look at?  We will watch for further developments for this.

1. Next meeting September 14 @ 7:30 pm. 

9.0 Dan Warkentin moved for adjournment @ 9:10 p.m.  Dennis Anderson seconded.

CLEARWATER COUNTY TAXPAYERS ASSOCIATION 

MEETING MINUTES 

May 11, 2017

LESLIEVILLE ELKS HALL 

1.0   Welcome and introductions

1. At 7:35 p.m. President Marianne Cole welcomed all those in attendance.  Those in attendance introduced themselves.

2.0   Approval of Agenda 

    2.  Larry Titford moved that we approve the agenda as presented. Al Gaetz seconded.  Carried.    

3.0   Guest Presentation:  Clearwater Broadband Foundation 

   3.  Clearwater Broadband Foundation represented by Michelle Swanson and Clayton Berg gave an informative talk about their foundation and what their goals are.  Internet access was the number one concern of Clearwater residents on the county survey.  The internet is the information highway and can benefit businesses, schooling and health services.  With wireless the distance is limited and continues to cost money due to upgrades whereas fibre optic’s limit is the speed of light.  A question and answer session followed their presentation.  Clearwater Broadband Foundation web address:  Clearwater-broadband.org.  CCTA had a draw for two $75.00 gift certificates to The Source, these were won by Ron Hallahan and Robert Brattberg.

1. Minutes of the last meeting

   4.   Marianne Cole read the minutes of the last meeting held April 13, 2017.  Dennis Anderson moved that the minutes be approved as presented.  Marion Schafer seconded.  Carried.

1.   Financial Report

1. Pat Butler read the financial report.  Pat Butler moved that the financial report by accepted as presented.  Ron Hallahan seconded.  Carried.

1. Business arising from the minutes
1. Dan and Marianne’s meeting with Pat and Curt.  Dan Warkentin and Marianne Cole met with Pat Alexander, Curt Maki and Ron Leaf to address our communication concerns.  Pat and Curt felt it was important to encourage people with concerns to phone their councilor.  There are going to be policies for public engagement in the new MGA.  CCTA feels it is important to have a timeline for a response to concerns.
2. Info from Municipal Affairs re:  question on the ballot at this fall’s election.  The information received from Municipal Affairs was that Municipal Affairs does not provide legal advice but that a question presented on a ballot has to have a yes or no answer.

1. New Business
1. Highlights of the Rocky Ag. Society’s meetings to promote the Rocky Ag. Rec Facility.  There was a poor turnout for the meetings.  There was a good presentation from the Rimbey Ag Society that brought up potential issues.  Discussion by CCTA brought up concerns with ongoing operating costs of a facility and it not being self-sustainable.
2. County Council Highlights from May 9^th 

• Development on County land in Caroline 
• Land use Bylaw Amendment passes first reading
• Condor Community Centre request
• Compassionate Care Hospice Society letter of support
• Town on Rocky recreation Master Plan
• Clearwater Broadband Foundation

1. Future action???

Discussion took place regarding future actions by CCTA by holding a public meeting re:  current development plans/ election issues.  An info page in the Western Star with our concerns with the development and election issues and including a survey was discussed.  A survey could also be posted to Facebook that the public could access.  For September we need ideas for questions to be put in the survey and find out the cost of an ad in The Western Star for a centerfold.

                7.4 Next meeting date??  Postpone one week due to Rocky Rodeo?  Robert Brattberg made a      motion to delay our next meeting to June 15^th.  Ron Hallahan seconded.  Carried.

1.  Next meeting June 15^th @ 7:30 pm. 
2. Pat Butler made a motion to adjourn @ 10:00 pm.

CLEARWATER COUNTY TAXPAYERS ASSOCIATION 

MEETING MINUTES 

APRIL 13, 2017

LESLIEVILLE ELKS HALL 

1.0   Welcome and introductions

1. At 7:05 p.m. President Marianne Cole welcomed all those in attendance.  Those in attendance introduced themselves.

2.0   Approval of Agenda 

    2.  Robert Brattberg moved that we approve the agenda as presented.  Larry Titford seconded.  Carried.

3.0   Minutes of the last Meeting 

   3.  Marianne Cole read minutes of March 9, 2017 meeting.  Ron Hallahan moved that minutes be approved as recorded.  Marlene Brattberg seconded.  Carried.

1.   Financial Report

   4.   Pat Butler read the financial report.  Pat Butler moved that the financial statements be accepted as presented. Ron Hallahan seconded.  Carried. 

5.0 Business arising from the minutes

5.1 Letter to Council.  Marianne read the letter that was sent to our county councilors inviting them to CCTA meetings.

  5.2 Info from Municipal Affairs re:  putting question on the ballot in fall election.  There are a few options to move forward with putting a question on the ballot: 

• Attend a council meeting to make a request
• Council can put a question on the ballot but it is not binding
• Petition to have a question put on the ballot – results are binding to council

Ken Qually moved to work to prepare a question for the ballot to present to council.  Dennis Anderson seconded.  Carried.

5.3 Report from joint council meeting March 14, 2017.  Highlights of the joint meeting were:

• Presentation by Clearwater Broadband Foundation – there was a presentation by the foundation of their vision and efforts to promote broadband services in the area.
• Area Structure Plan – Reasons for the development and the process so far were outlined by Ron Leaf, Mayor Nash, Reeve Alexander, Rick Emmons and Bill Shaw.
• Opinions were expressed by each councilor from the county and the town if they were in favour of the development and their concerns.

1. New Business

6.1 Guest Darryl Park re:  how can we be more visible/ get our info out to more people?  Darryl gave an informative talk of his business and how he could help the CCTA get their message out to more people.  Using his services will be discussed at an upcoming CCTA meeting.

6.2 April 11 County Council Meeting Highlights.  Topics of the meeting were:

• Summer Tour – an ATV trip is being planned for August to promote Public Land Use Zones and to advocate the work the county has been doing to maintain west country trails.

• Clearwater Regional Fire Services – Pivotal Project has been retained as project manager for the construction of the new Condor/Leslieville Fire Hall.
• Nordegg Historic CIBC Building – Building is slated for demolition.  TdB Construction has offered to stabilize the structure by reinvesting the demolition cost.
• Pine Beetle Resilience Project – A student from UBC was granted approval to use a focus group to study strategies to make our forests more resilient to pine beetle attacks.
• Financial Matters – the federal budget, reserve transfers, 2016 audited financial statements and the tax rate bylaw were discussed.  There will be a 0% tax increase in municipal taxes!
• CCTA Letter of Invitation – our letter of invitation was discussed.

1. More election Issues.  Marianne received an email from a concerned resident that listed several concerns with the direction of the county.  Some of these concerns were:  Employee numbers in the county, money that has been spent on the north development, councilors not communicating with electors, broadband in the county, and concerns with county employee work environment.
2. Speaker for May or June meeting.  Discussion took place regarding a guest speaker for upcoming meetings.  It was decided to invite our local Clearwater Broadband Foundation to speak at the May meeting.
3. There is a meeting time change for our upcoming CCTA meetings for May, June, September and October.  Meetings will start at 7:30 pm.

1. Open Forum
2. Citizen Concern – CCTA were given pictures of gravel in the ditch and trash left in a ditch following brushing.  Other concerns that were discussed were the fresh water being used for fracking taken from the Lobstick and a lake.  Also, the Rocky Ag Society is having meetings as advertised in The Western Star and The Mountaineer re:  Ag recreation building.
3. A member relayed their experience with the county concerning communication with two different departments.  The waste authority and the public works departments made contact promptly after being sent messages on the contact form on the county website.
1. Next Meeting May 11 @ 7:30 pm.
2. Adjournment.  Laverne Ahlstrom moved for adjournment @ 10:00 pm.  Seconded by Al Gaetz.

CLEARWATER COUNTY TAXPAYERS ASSOCIATION 

MEETING MINUTES 

MARCH 9, 2017

LESLIEVILLE ELKS HALL 

1.0   Welcome and introductions

1. At 7:05 p.m. President Marianne Cole welcomed all those in attendance.  Those in attendance introduced themselves.

2.0   Approval of Agenda 

    2.  Ron Hallahan moved that we approve the agenda as presented.  Dan Warkentin seconded.  Carried.

3.0   Minutes of the last Meeting 

   3.  Marianne Cole read minutes of February 9, 2017 meeting.  Jack Leslie moved that minutes be approved as recorded Marion Schafer seconded.  Carried.

1.   Financial Report

   4.   Pat Butler read the financial report.  Pat Butler moved that the financial statements be accepted as presented.  Sharon Rubeling seconded.  Carried. 

1.   Business arising from the minutes

5.1 Meeting with Pat & Curt.  No meeting has taken place.  There hasn’t been a meeting time set up with them after letters and talking to them.  Marianne Cole will write a letter to council with our communication concerns and to invite councilors to our monthly CCTA meetings.  Marianne will look into other county policies regarding communication with residents.

1. Report from Area Structure Plan Open House.   Regarding the open house that was held, it had a map of the proposed development but no financial figures.  There are questions if there is an area structure plan in place and legal issues.  There is going to be a special joint meeting between the county and the town on Tuesday @ 2:00.

1. New business
1. Report from Council Meeting---February 28 written by Helge Nome.  Summary is as follows:

• There was a delegation from the town of Rocky to report on public concerns about discharge from the lagoon into the North Saskatchewan River.
• Funding was approved for maintenance of the Aquatic Centre.
• There was a delegation from the Clearwater Broadband Foundation promoting optical fibre for internet in the county.  They are looking for a loan from the county of 3.48 million.
• On a recommendation from Public Works, council decided to post “No winter maintenance” signs on roads in the west county that are not being graded in the winter.

1. Invitation to councilors to attend meetings.  This was addressed in agenda item 5.1.
2. Election Update.  Dan Warkentin presented a list of 5 election issues that we would like to see county council adopt.  To summarize:

• Increase lead time for councilors from agenda to meetings
• County council to develop a communication policy
• County council to adopt a policy to prevent or reduce competition with private business
• County council to adopt a policy to limit the term of the Reeve to two years.
• County council to adopt a policy to clearly communicate Special Council Meetings.

1. Getting a question put on the ballot at election time.  Discussion took place regarding the process to achieve this.

1. Open Forum.

7.1 There was a concern brought forward from the budget deliberations.  What is the long term debt interest for that was in the budget?  This question was asked in a letter to councilors dated October 14, 2016 and there hasn’t been a reply as of todays date.

1. Next Meeting April 13 2017 @ 7:00 p.m.

1. Adjournment.  Marlene Brattberg moved for adjournment.  Al Gaetz seconded.

CLEARWATER COUNTY TAXPAYERS ASSOCIATION 

MEETING MINUTES 

FEBRUARY 9, 2017

LESLIEVILLE ELKS HALL 

1.0   Welcome and introductions

1. At 7:05 p.m. President Marianne Cole welcomed all those in attendance.  Those in attendance introduced themselves.

2.0   Approval of Agenda 

    2.  Item 6.6, 6.7, and 6.8 were added to the agenda. Marlene Brattberg moved that we approve the agenda as presented.  Dennis Ross seconded.  Carried.

3.0   Minutes of the last Meeting 

   3.  Marianne Cole read minutes of January 12, 2017 meeting.  Trish Bingham moved that minutes be approved as recorded.  Dan Warkentin seconded.  Carried.

1.   Financial Report

   4.   Pat Butler read the financial report.  Pat Butler moved that the financial statements be accepted as presented.  Dennis Anderson seconded.  Carried. 

1.   Business arising from the minutes

1. Letter to Pat Alexander re: joint meeting.  A letter had been sent January 19, 2017 to Pat Alexander requesting a meeting with him and Curt Maki in regards to not receiving any responses to our letters addressing our concerns.  A reply to the letter was not received so Marianne and Dan spoke to Pat and Curt on January 24, 2017 to set up a meeting.  Pat and Curt felt that Ron Leaf should be included as well.  They are to let Marianne know when a time works for them.  

5.2 A concern was brought forward by a member regarding not getting a reply from the county when concerns are raised with his own personal experience.  Messages are left with staff and calls are not returned. 

1. New business
1. Joint Town/County Council Meeting January 24, 2017.  At the joint meeting on January 24, 2017, council went “in camera” to discuss the Joint Service Agreement regarding the water and wastewater development.  No decision was made.  The county and town are waiting on more information before making a decision. 
2. County Open House and Information Meeting February 16, 2017.  There will be an open house and meeting held February 16, 2017 for the Clearwater-North Rocky Major Area Structure Plan.  This meeting will be held at the Subway room in the Christianson Center.  Open house from 6:30 – 7:30pm.  Meeting 7:30 - 8:30pm.
3. Information article re:  above for the Western Star?  Discussion took place about the need for the public to have more information about the proposed development.  Trish Bingham made a motion to put information in the Western Star about the proposed development with the heading “When is enough enough?” Robert Brattberg seconded.  Carried.
4. Leslieville/Condor Fire Hall update.  Council has decided to go forward with the process of buying land for the new firehall.
5. Invitation to councilors to attend our meetings.  Discussion took place about having county councilors attend our meetings.  Ken Qually moved that all councilors are given an invitation to attend CCTA meetings.  Lawrence Stewart seconded.  Carried.
6. Letter from Municipal Affairs.  Marianne Cole sent a letter to Municipal Affairs on February 8, 2017 with our concerns with some concerns regarding the Joint Services Agreement.  A reply was received February 9, 2017.
7. Ken Qually announced a candidate that will run in the next county election in Division 2.  He introduced Cammie Liard and she gave an outline of why she will be running.
8. Elections.  Discussion took place about council elections and limiting the Reeve position to two terms.

1. Next meeting March  9, 2017 @ 7:00pm.

1. Adjournment. Motion to adjourn was made by Dan Warkentin @ 9:05 p.m.  Seconded by Dennis Anderson.

Note: These are the October 13, 2016 Meeting Minutes

CLEARWATER COUNTY TAXPAYERS ASSOCIATION

MEETING MINUTES

October 13, 2016

Leslieville Elks Hall

1. Welcome and Introductions

1. At 7:30 PM President Marianne Cole welcomed all those in attendance and called the meeting to order.  All those in attendance introduced themselves.   There were 16 members in attendance.

1. Approval of agenda

Apologies as I did not record who moved to adopt the agenda as presented with additions and who seconded them..

1. Adoption of Minutes of the Previous Meeting

1. Minutes of the previous meeting of  September 8, 2016 were read by Marianne Cole.  Jack Leslie moved the minutes be adopted as recorded. Seconded by Ron Schultz.  Carried

1. Financial Report

1. The financials were read and adopted by Ron Schultz and Dennis Ross seconded

1. Business arising from the Minutes

5.1 Regarding letters sent to the county – at this time no replies had been received. The letters sent on June 17 asking for more transparency and letter dated September 6 asking for more lead time with the agenda;  Marianne to follow up.  Dan Wokentin moved that CCTA send a letter to the county requesting the County to review their timeline for sending out their agenda’s to the councillors in a more timely manner.  Dan would still like to see at least a week for the councillors to review before meeting. Marlene Brattberg seconded

5.2 FOIP request was made however no response as yet.  Sent in September 22, 2016.  Marianne read out the letter sent for information regarding Caroline/Rocky Airport. The County had until October 24, 2016 to respond.

5.3 Municipal review:   Marianne received a letter stating that CCTA will not be involved in this review.  She received a call on October 12, 2016 stating that it is common for the preliminary review to only have a few people involved.  They also sent a letter Oct. 13, 2016 which was read out at our meeting. They have a record of all our calls from the last 2 years and that they will be bringing this information to their meetings.  We may have a response by Christmas.  We are hopeful they see the need to delve further into the working of our County.

5.4 Annual Meeting;   It was determined that the annual meeting would be held on November 10, 2016 at 7 PM at the Elks hall in Leslieville.  We have guest speaker Jason Nixon coming to talk to the members.

5.5 Dan wanted clarification regarding some of the County Financials.  They are not clear to the average taxpayer.

Marianne to add to the letter to the County asking for a definition of “Long term debt”.  Why when we have a surplus are we not paying the debt off instead of paying huge interest payments.

1. NEW Business
1. Council meeting notes – Helge’s notes were discussed.  The increase in salaries was brought up at council and Theresa Laing asking for a hold.  They turned it down.
2. Discussed meeting with Nordegg.  This meeting was very positive. It was held October 12, 2016 , the notes from that meeting were read out to the members.  Nordegg wanted to clear the air with CCTA.  It appears the County is holding their community back, they will not allow them to use the school/firehall for meetings.  County constantly putting up roadblocks to the community of Nordegg.   It was suggested that CCTA write a letter of support.  This will be added to the main letter Marianne is constructing.

1. Open Forum
1. Jack Leslie spoke about the waste authority and some of its inner workings. It is ½ county and ½ town funded.
2. Ken Qually is concerned about the by-law wording regarding parking in sub-divisions. It is not clear as to whom it will affect and how can they control what you park on your own property?  Marianne to put in our letter to County asking for “clarification” re: “sub-division” parking laws.
3. County Elections are coming up -  Laverne Ahlstrom wanted people to start thinking about who they want back on council and to start lobbying people they feel would make a difference.

1. Next Meeting November 10, 2016 .   There will be no December 2016 meeting.

Meeting was adjorned at 9:50 PM by Dan and seconded by Dennis

CLEARWATER COUNTY TAXPAYERS ASSOCIATION
MEETING MINUTES

JANUARY 12, 2017
LESLIEVILLE ELKS HALL

1.0 Welcome and introductions

1. At 7:05 p.m. President Marianne Cole welcomed all those in attendance. Those in attendance introduced themselves.


2.0 Approval of Agenda
2. Item 6.5 was added to the agenda. Dan Warkentin moved that we approve the agenda as presented. Al Gaetz seconded. Carried.

3.0 Minutes of the last Meeting
3. Marianne Cole read minutes of October 13, 2016 meeting. Marion Schafer moved that minutes be approved as recorded. Robert Brattberg seconded. Carried.

4.0 Financial Report
4. Pat Butler read the financial report. Pat Butler moved that the financial statements be accepted as presented. Jack Leslie seconded. Carried.

5.0 Business arising from the minutes

5.1 FOIP request reply. A FOIP request regarding the details of land purchases in Caroline and north of Rocky was sent. A reply was received October 20, 2016. Many of our questions remain unanswered as council quoted FOIP as grounds for not answering some questions.
5.2 There are two letters that have been written to council that have not been replied to yet. The October 14, 2016 letter brought forward our concerns about agenda lead times, long term debt and the highway management bylaw. The December 15, 2016 letter addressed the concerns regarding a culvert replacement, the over-run of the Tiami Hall demolition and the $200,000 for the county’s IT system fix and using Microsoft Cloud.



6.0 New business
6.1 Survey results. Marianne Cole went over the summary report of the Service Level Feedback Survey that the county conducted regarding enhancements and reductions and capital priorities.
6.2 Budget. Dan Warkentin reported on some highlights of the 2017-2019 budget. Some of these are:
* New admin building Phase 1 and 2 are not in budget for 2017
* Area Service Plan, Joint Development Plan and Joint Service Agreement will proceed.
* County will keep “merit” increases for personnel (est $190,000)
* 2.144 million of unrestricted reserves (from 2016) were used to balance budget.
6.3 Municipal Review. The county received a letter from Municipal Affairs stating that there wasn’t enough of a concern to proceed with a municipal inspection. This letter was discussed at the last council meeting and they decided not to continue with a review on their own.
6.4 February meeting –ask councilors to attend? Susan Durand made a motion to invite councilors to our meetings going forward. Laverne Ahlstrom seconded. Carried. Robert Brattberg made a motion for Dan Warkentin and Marianne Cole to meet with Pat Alexander and Curt Maki to address some of our concerns. Marlene Brattberg seconded. Carried.
6.5 Election. With an election coming up October 2017, it is important to encourage quality people to run in the election.


7.0 Next meeting February 9, 2017 @ 7:00pm.


8.0 Adjournment. Motion to adjourn was made by Dan Warkentin @ 9:20 p.m. Seconded by Trish Bingham.

CLEARWATER COUNTY TAXPAYERS ASSOCIATION 

ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

MEETING MINUTES 

NOVEMBER 12, 2015 

LESLIEVILLE ELKS HALL

1.0 Welcome 

1. At 7:05 p.m. President Marianne Cole welcomed all those in attendance. Attendees introduced themselves and stated where they were from. 

2.0 Guest Speaker 

2. Marianne Cole welcomed our guest speaker, Don Bester, president of Alberta Surface Rights Group. Don spoke about the concern over orphan wells and who is liable to clean up well sites. There have been 18 oil companies that have gone into bankruptcy since January 2015. Landowners have been told that they would be made whole when letting oil companies on their land. Landowners are no longer protected through sec. 36. Banks may want an environmental assessment before selling your land. There was a concern raised regarding clubroot infection in the county with soil being moved into the county. Residents in the county have had land infected through oil activity through rigmats.

3.0 Approval of Agenda 

3. Marion Schafer moved to approve the agenda. Lawrence Stewart seconded. Carried.

4.0 Approval of minutes of last annual meeting. 

4. Jack Leslie moved to approve the minutes as recorded. Laverne Ahlstrom seconded. Carried. 

5.0 Financial Report. 

5. Sharon Rubeling read the financial report. Dan Warkentin moved to approve the financial report as presented. Ken Qually seconded. Carried.

6.0 Business arising from the minutes. 

6.1 September letter to county and succeeding events. Marianne Cole had written a letter to council on September 15, 2015 expressing several concerns, including the CAO salary. This letter was discussed at the council meeting on October 13, 2015. Marianne had written another letter disputing the response to our concerns in the agenda for the meeting on October 12, 2015. Marianne attended the meeting on October 13, 2015 and attempted to have a discussion with Pat Alexander and Rudy Huisman. There has been no response to the letter of October 12, 2015. 

6.2 Business Cards. The new business cards are now available and can be distributed. 

6.3 Phone call to reeve of Brazeau County. Marianne Cole called and he is unable to commit to come and speak at a meeting. 

6.4 Letter to Minister of Municipal Affairs re: linear tax pooling. Marianne Cole wrote a letter to the Minister on November 4, 2015. 

6.5 Phone call re: speaker from Municipal Affairs. Municipal Affairs will not send a speaker out to speak to our members at a meeting. 

6.6 Farmers Ticket – overweight ticket. No further action will be taken at this time. 

6.7 Di-Corp issue. Marianne Cole e-mailed a letter to Di-Corp. cc: Rick Emmons and Alberta Transportation concerning no signage on highway 598 and on the Di-Corp site.

7.0 New Business 

7.1 Election of Officers. 

President – Laverne Ahlstrom nominated Marianne Cole for president. Ken Qually moved that nominations cease. Al Gaetz seconded. Carried. 

Vice President – Jack Leslie nominated Helge Nome. Ken Qually moved that nominations cease. Dennis Ross seconded. Carried. 

Secretary – Coral Ahlstrom nominated Susan Durand. Dan Warkentin moved that nominations cease. Marion Shafer seconded. Carried. 

Treasurer – Ken Qually nominated Sharon Rubeling. Sharon Rubeling nominated Dan Warkentin- he declined. Ken Qually moved nominations cease. Al Gaetz seconded. Carried. 

Directors – Ken Qually, Jack Leslie, Trish Bingham, Dan Warkentin and Jim Foesier will let their names stand as directors. Laverne Ahlstrom moved that we accept those named. Helge Nome seconded. Carried. 

7.2 Report on council – Helge Nome. Council is introducing an interim budget. The budgeting process should be an open process with the public. 18 million has not yet been committed to the office project. There is a concern that motions made after an in-camera session are being made after public and reporters have left the meeting. 

7.3 Upcoming meetings. 

November 17th West Central Stakeholders meeting about water use at Lou Soppit Centre @ 6:00. 

November 18th Open house at Hardendale hall 6-8 concerning the development of a gravel pit. 

November 24 or 25th Associated Aggregates open house at Dovercourt Hall 4-7 concerning a gravel pit.

8.0 Next Meeting. The next meeting will be January 14, 2016 at the Leslieville Elks Hall.

9.0 Adjournment. Dan Warkentin moved the meeting be adjourned at 9:40p.m.