Halloween pumpkins give way to Remembrance Day, which will then give way to Christmas. It is amazing to me how fast time goes when marked by the important events or holidays in our lives.
Rocky View County held its annual organizational meeting on October 22nd. Our Reeve & Deputy Reeve remain the same.
I will be on the following boards/ committees this year: Agricultural Service Board, ALUS Partnership Advisory Committee, Subdivision & Development Appeal Board (Alternate), Family and Community Support Services Board, Governance & Priorities Committee (Vice-Chair), Recreation Governance Committee (Chair).
In addition, I sit on a number of external boards/committees including: Spray Lake Sawmill Recreation Parks Society Board, Springbank Airport Community Noise Consultative Committee, Springbank Park for All Seasons. Needless to say, I’m pretty busy representing the County, but I do love it!
The board I’m quite excited about this year is the newly formed Recreation Governance Committee. This board will focus on recreational strategy and needs throughout the County. This is important because as we grow in population, attracting young families and with an aging demographic, we need to ensure we are responding to the needs of people as population groups change.
There are times and places where it makes absolute sense to rely on recreational delivery from a neighbouring municipality, and there are times and places where it makes much more sense to invest into our own County. This won’t be an either/or recreation model, it will be a combination of population base, community interest, distance from a municipal neighbour, etc. I’m looking forward to the completion of our master recreational plan so we can invest in recreation in a meaningful way and in a way that adds value to Rocky View Residents.
People have asked me why my focus has been on recreation? It is important to me, and I know others, that believe a community is made up of more than just houses. More than people. More than just commuting to work in the city. More than just the space that we treasure around us. It is about creating those spaces that bring people together. It involves people and the places we’ll interact with them. Yes we can all drive into the city, and play in a pool or gym, buy some groceries, go out for dinner – but we’ll do so in an anonymous way, likely not even bumping into anyone else you know and having that grocery cart chat. That casual place where random conversations are able to happen, to share a bit of you with someone who lives down the road. It is important to create spaces where those connection points will happen. That is how we build community. Recreation, along with schools, community businesses, employment and restaurants are the cornerstones to creating community, and this is why it is important to me.
