City Notebook: Calls to Ottawa substitute ‘Teck Frontier’ for ‘Trans Mountain’
By COLLIN GALLANT on February 8, 2020.
cgallant@medicinehatnews.com@CollinGallant It was a full-court press on Friday for the approval of the Teck Frontier Mine. Local MLA Drew Barnes went as far as to say a rejection of the project by the federal Liberals might be enough to spark a referendum on separation. Alberta Environment Minister Jason Nixon called a press conference on Friday – coincidentally at the same time as Ottawa was outlining progress on the Trans Mountain Pipeline – to hammer home that Alberta needs this project and Ottawa better not play politics. This comes following media reports the Liberal government is preparing a sort of aid package for the energy sector. Social media roared that it was probably a sign Frontier was en route to being cancelled. Nixon said the industry doesn’t want a bailout, it wants to go to work. Well, Alberta could certainly use a bail-out package, especially as it relates to orphan well cleanup. And, while the project’s status is a matter of material concern, Alberta might be more likely trying to change the channel after the Trans Mountain file moved forward this week. Albertans had offered even-money odds the expansion project would eventually collapse due to mishandling. It won a court victory this week regarding a redo on consultation that Conservatives said should never have been redone or would be again bungled. The decision on the major oilsands project is due by the end of February, which could be a long month this year. Youth be served Just as the News published an opinion piece this week about better engaging local youth about social and economic issues and future planning, a group in town is announcing plans to do just that. The Community Foundation of Southeast Alberta will be ramping up discussion sessions in the next few weeks that will form the newest Vital Signs report. It will focus on Hatters aged 15 to 29 asking what are the biggest issues and how we should view potential solutions. Name that candidate Last week, the mayor was – or rather wasn’t – discussing a re-election bid and this week the province launched a survey regarding changes to local elections. In that vein the News has done an unscientific study, more of a perusal of the now official compendium of municipal election results from 2017, and found that voters generally don’t like nicknames. Only about 20 of 80 candidates across Alberta who listed a nickname or alternate version of their birth name on a ballot in 2017 – it’s their legal right – was successful in winning a seat. One of the winners is none other than Medicine Hat’s own Keith Edward Clugston, better known as Ted, but three others here – including mayoral challenger Thomas “Tall Bike Tommy” Fougere – weren’t winners on election night. A large number of the nicknames on a new “for the record” data list from Municipal Affairs are your typical run of the mill. Bobs, Bills, and Bettys were used instead of Robert, William or Elizabeth. But there was a Basil better known as “Butch” in the town of Bentley and a “Pepper” who was left out in Lacombe. Notable success stories are H.S. “Buck” Buchanan is a four-term city councillor in Red Deer, and Gerald Brass Campion, a councillor in Hanna. A look ahead The city’s planning department is prepared to release its 2019 report on construction activity in Medicine Hat on Wednesday. A public service committee meeting is scheduled for Monday. 100 years ago New taxes and hikes could be on the way, according to a report by council’s taxation committee, the News detailed on Feb. 7, 1920. The committee had been charged to balance new revenue after a collapse of the land speculation market in Medicine Hat, which had bet big on new suburban development. Tax recovery of unpaid bills on outlaying parcels had seen the city take over about $500,000 worth of assessed property, equal to about one-fifth the entire assessment base. A citizen-led committee proposed a new education tax be levied on all rental units in the city and be collected via utility charges. As well, they suggested a new poll tax on those who did not own property in the city. The department store in Leader, Sask. burned to the ground, the result of a gas leak. Insurance actuaries in Scotland said they had correlated a person’s life span to their weight, with thin persons generally living longer. Collin Gallant covers city politics and a variety of topics for the News. Reach him at 403-528-5664 or via email at cgallant@medicinehatnews.com 31-30
