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Lacombe City Council Meeting Highlights

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HIGHLIGHTS OF THE REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING
MARCH 8, 2018

BYLAW NOS. 1269/18 & 1270/18 PUBLIC HEARING
A public hearing was held for Bylaw Nos. 1269/18 and 1270/18. Bylaw No. 1269/18 is a bylaw of Lacombe County to amend the Lacombe County Land Use Bylaw No. 1237/17. Bylaw 1270/18 is a bylaw of Lacombe County to amend the Lacombe County Municipal Development Plan Bylaw No.
1238/17. An amendment to Bylaw No. 1269/18 to add adult care residences as a discretionary use to the Agricultural “A” District received Council approval. Council subsequently approved second and third reading of the bylaws.

MDP & LUB 2017 REVIEW – ANNUAL REPORT & MONITORING MATRIX
The Municipal Development Plan (MDP) and Land Use Bylaw (LUB) were adopted in July 2017 and as per Policy MUNI 8.3.2 require an annual review and report based on the findings of the Monitoring Matrix of the MDP. The Municipal Development Plan and Land Use Bylaw 2017 Review – Annual Report & Monitoring Matrix were presented and received for information by Council.

PARADISE SHORES RV DEVELOPMENT (STETTLER COUNTY)
A proposal to rezone the NE 20-40-20 W4M and Pt. NW 21-40-20 W4M in the County of Stettler from Agricultural “A” District to Recreational Facility “RF” District to facilitate the development of a 1000 unit RV resort known as Paradise Shores has been referred to Lacombe County for comment. By resolution of Council the County Manager was authorized to send a letter to the County of Stettler outlining the County’s concerns with the Paradise Shores RV Development; and further, that a Councillor and staff member attend the Public Hearing on Saturday March 17, 2018 at 1:00 p.m. at the Stettler District Agricultural Society Pavilion to speak to Lacombe County’s concerns.

BYLAW NO. 1276/18 – TOWN OF ECKVILLE/LACOMBE COUNTY IDP
Bylaw No. 1276/18, a bylaw of Lacombe County to amend the Town of Eckville/Lacombe County Intermunicipal Development Plan Bylaw No. 1088/08 was given first reading. A public hearing regarding Bylaw No. 1276/18 will be held on April 12, 2018 commencing at 9:00 a.m.

CITY OF LACOMBE – CAPITAL FUNDING REQUEST
A resolution that Lacombe County contribute to the City of Lacombe’s 2018 Recreation Facilities Capital expenditures as follows: 1) $ 906.40 to Lacombe Memorial Centre, 2) $ 13,195 to GMAG Aquatic Center and 3) $ 3,720 GMGA Sportsplex Curling Club: and further, that this contribution be funded from the Recreation Capital Assistance Reserve received the approval of Council.

TOWN OF ECKVILLE – CAPITAL FUNDING REQUEST
A resolution that Lacombe County Council contribute $15,000 towards upgrades to the Eckville Community Centre; and further, that this contribution be funded from the County’s Recreation Capital Assistance Reserve received the approval of Council.

LACOMBE REGIONAL AIRPORT 2018 CAPITAL FUNDING REQUEST A resolution that Lacombe County provide funding in the amount of $ 32,000 towards the Lacombe Regional Airport’s north taxiway capital project received Council approval. Council will meet with Lacombe Regional Airport representatives for a tour of the Regional Airport on a date to be determined.

PARKLAND REGIONAL LIBRARY BOARD RFP
Parkland Regional Library (PRL) Board has advised that they are appealing to member municipalities and local builders for assistance in acquiring a new headquarters building for the regional library system. PRL has received a $2.4 million provincial grant to be used for either renovating their current building or constructing a new facility. A functionality study was conducted and PRL is now examining possible options for obtaining a new building and have issued a Request for Proposal (RFP) to determine options.

RR 3, Lacombe, AB T4L 2N3 (Tel) 403.782.6601 (Fax) 403.782.3820 www.lacombecounty.com for moving forward with this initiative. The report on the Parkland Regional Library Request for Proposal regarding the Library System Headquarters Relocation was received for information.

CAEP – SUB-REGIONAL BUSINESS PLAN DEVELOPMENT – BROADBAND
The Central Alberta Economic Partnership (CAEP) sub-regional broadband development roundtable session was held on February 15, 2018. This session was the second phase of CAEP’s broadband study. The study was to determine the current state of broadband in the region, which will assist in identifying opportunities and options for high quality broadband at an affordable price. Council authorized the County Manager to designate staff from Corporate Services to continue representing Lacombe County in the CAEP broadband initiative.

PRIVATE MEMBER’S MOTION M-167 (RURAL CRIME)
Private Member’s Motion M-167 in regard to the significant increase in rural crime and the escalation in theft, assault and burglary was presented for Council’s consideration. MP Shannon Stubbs has proposed the motion asking the government to begin a study on rural crime. Benalto Rural Crime Watch has forwarded the motion requesting that Lacombe County endorse the motion. By resolution Council endorsed the Private Member’s Motion M-167; and will contact the Standing Committee on Public Safety and Natural Security MP’s in support of the Motion.

COUNCIL SELF EVALUATION
Council was presented with a draft self-assessment template for discussion. Council agreed this would be a useful tool and will discuss an expanded draft at the March 29, 2018 Committee of the Whole meeting.

BYLAW NO. 1275/18 APPOINTMENT OF ASSESSOR
Bylaw No.1275/18, a bylaw of Lacombe County to appoint an assessor as a designated officer received first, second and third reading and so passed by Council.

DIRECTOR OF GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS – CP RAILWAY
Mike LoVicchio, Director of Government Affairs, CP Railway provided a presentation on CP Rail, In Your Community highlighting safety, transportation of dangerous goods, emergency management, tank car standards for flammable liquids, CP grain network and railcar improvements.

STARS AIR AMBULANCE
Glenda Farnden, Municipal Relations Liaison, STARS provided a presentation to Council regarding STARS operations, the missions undertaken by STARS in Lacombe County and neighboring Counties and funding initiatives. The County was approached to join the Municipal Partners Initiative, at a cost of $2 per capita annual commitment. The request was referred back to the County Manager for the preparationof a report on this matter to be presented at a future Council meeting.

CLIVE ATHLETIC AND AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY
Laurie Oatway, Secretary of the Clive Athletic and Agricultural Society presented the Society’s RC(1) application to Lacombe County for funding. The funding request is to cover a portion of the costs related to 1) major repairs to the ice plant at the Clive Arena, and 2) rental of a temporary ice plant. The request to the County is for $ 65,000 in funding. The request was referred back to the County Manager for the preparation of a report on this matter to be presented at a future Council meeting

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SPARC Red Deer – Caring Adult Nominations open now!

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Red Deer community let’s give a round of applause to the incredible adults shaping the future of our kids. Whether they’re a coach, neighbour, teacher, mentor, instructor, or someone special, we want to know about them!

Tell us the inspiring story of how your nominee is helping kids grow up great. We will honour the first 100 local nominees for their outstanding contributions to youth development. It’s time to highlight those who consistently go above and beyond!

To nominate, visit Events (sparcreddeer.ca)

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Addictions

‘Harm Reduction’ is killing B.C.’s addicts. There’s got to be a better way

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From the Frontier Centre for Public Policy

By Susan Martinuk 

B.C. recently decriminalized the possession of small amounts of illicit drugs. The resulting explosion of addicts using drugs in public spaces, including parks and playgrounds, recently led the province’s NDP government to attempt to backtrack on this policy

Since 2016, more than 40,000 Canadians have died from opioid drug overdoses — almost as many as died during the Second World War.
Governments, health care professionals and addiction experts all acknowledge that widespread use of opioids has created a public health crisis in Canada. Yet they agree on virtually nothing else about this crisis, including its causes, possible remedies and whether addicts should be regarded as passive victims or accountable moral agents.

Fuelled by the deadly manufactured opioid fentanyl, Canada’s national drug overdose rate stood at 19.3 people per 100,000 in 2022, a shockingly high number when compared to the European Union’s rate of just 1.8. But national statistics hide considerable geographic variation. British Columbia and Alberta together account for only a quarter of Canada’s population yet nearly half of all opioid deaths. B.C.’s 2022 death rate of 45.2/100,000 is more than double the national average, with Alberta close behind at 33.3/100,00.

In response to the drug crisis, Canada’s two western-most provinces have taken markedly divergent approaches, and in doing so have created a natural experiment with national implications.

B.C. has emphasized harm reduction, which seeks to eliminate the damaging effects of illicit drugs without actually removing them from the equation. The strategy focuses on creating access to clean drugs and includes such measures as “safe” injection sites, needle exchange programs, crack-pipe giveaways and even drug-dispensing vending machines. The approach goes so far as to distribute drugs like heroin and cocaine free of charge in the hope addicts will no longer be tempted by potentially tainted street drugs and may eventually seek help.

But safe-supply policies create many unexpected consequences. A National Post investigation found, for example, that government-supplied hydromorphone pills handed out to addicts in Vancouver are often re-sold on the street to other addicts. The sellers then use the money to purchase a street drug that provides a better high — namely, fentanyl.

Doubling down on safe supply, B.C. recently decriminalized the possession of small amounts of illicit drugs. The resulting explosion of addicts using drugs in public spaces, including parks and playgrounds, recently led the province’s NDP government to attempt to backtrack on this policy — though for now that effort has been stymied by the courts.

According to Vancouver city councillor Brian Montague, “The stats tell us that harm reduction isn’t working.” In an interview, he calls decriminalization “a disaster” and proposes a policy shift that recognizes the connection between mental illness and addiction. The province, he says, needs “massive numbers of beds in treatment facilities that deal with both addictions and long-term mental health problems (plus) access to free counselling and housing.”

In fact, Montague’s wish is coming true — one province east, in Alberta. Since the United Conservative Party was elected in 2019, Alberta has been transforming its drug addiction policy away from harm reduction and towards publicly-funded treatment and recovery efforts.

Instead of offering safe-injection sites and free drugs, Alberta is building a network of 10 therapeutic communities across the province where patients can stay for up to a year, receiving therapy and medical treatment and developing skills that will enable them to build a life outside the drug culture. All for free. The province’s first two new recovery centres opened last year in Lethbridge and Red Deer. There are currently over 29,000 addiction treatment spaces in the province.

This treatment-based strategy is in large part the work of Marshall Smith, current chief of staff to Alberta’s premier and a former addict himself, whose life story is a testament to the importance of treatment and recovery.

The sharply contrasting policies of B.C. and Alberta allow a comparison of what works and what doesn’t. A first, tentative report card on this natural experiment was produced last year in a study from Stanford University’s network on addiction policy (SNAP). Noting “a lack of policy innovation in B.C.,” where harm reduction has become the dominant policy approach, the report argues that in fact “Alberta is currently experiencing a reduction in key addiction-related harms.” But it concludes that “Canada overall, and B.C. in particular, is not yet showing the progress that the public and those impacted by drug addiction deserve.”

The report is admittedly an early analysis of these two contrasting approaches. Most of Alberta’s recovery homes are still under construction, and B.C.’s decriminalization policy is only a year old. And since the report was published, opioid death rates have inched higher in both provinces.

Still, the early returns do seem to favour Alberta’s approach. That should be regarded as good news. Society certainly has an obligation to try to help drug users. But that duty must involve more than offering addicts free drugs. Addicted people need treatment so they can kick their potentially deadly habit and go on to live healthy, meaningful lives. Dignity comes from a life of purpose and self-control, not a government-funded fix.

Susan Martinuk is a senior fellow at the Frontier Centre for Public Policy and author of the 2021 book Patients at Risk: Exposing Canada’s Health Care Crisis. A longer version of this article recently appeared at C2CJournal.ca.

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