No further Postal Address changes this year: As you may know, some areas of Foothills County have had changes to their postal addresses over the last few years. We recently checked with Canada Post to see where they are at regarding the remaining addresses. They indicated that they have completed replacing the old green mailboxes with the new community boxes and, at this time, do not plan to convert any more of the Foothills postal addresses to the 911 addresses in 2020. This may resume in 2021, but nothing is currently planned.
Critter Reminder: A number of cougar sightings in the Priddis area have been posted to Facebook recently. Any time of the year, we have a high cougar population in the west area of the County, as we live in their territory. So, just a reminder to avoid attracting the animals to your yard and thereby prevent encounters or conflicts. More info: www.alberta.ca/cougars.aspx
Light Trespass Enforcement Mechanism: At our Council Meeting on January 8, our council and administration had a discussion on how to deal with a growing issue of complaints about Light Trespass that is done with the intent to harass neighbours or consequently disturbs quality of life. While we have a Dark Sky Bylaw in place and request compliant, downward- shining lighting on all new builds, we need a means to follow through with complaints. Our Dark Sky Initiative Committee has made a lot of effort to share information and the reasons to consider choosing thoughtful lighting, by explaining the effects of light pollution on our observatories, health, creatures and country living. In no way are we diminishing a resident’s right to light. Just use what is needed on the property and keep the light from trespassing, extreme brightness and offending neighbours. When complaints are received, we take action with Bylaw Officers contacting residents to advise of the concerns. However, we are looking for a more effective response, especially to address the harassment forms and bright lights showing up in the telescopes in the areas around the observatories. Some options include adding to our Dark Sky Bylaw or Land Use Bylaw or Community Standards Bylaw. As many of our councillors have received complaints, our council conversation resulted in a request that a meeting with our solicitor be arranged to obtain a legal opinion on issues surrounding light trespass and associated enforcement. For more info on this subject, please visit: www.darksky.org/our-work/lighting/lighting-for-citizens/lighting-basics/ and www.darksky.org/light-pollution/lighting-crime-and-safety/
Airbnbs in Foothills County: Airbnb type rental agreements are currently not permitted by Foothills County and contravene the Land Use Bylaw. Our Land Use Bylaw allows for Bed & Breakfast and Secondary Suite developments, but not this short-term, usually whole-house rental aspect. At our Council Meeting on January 8, we discussed the matter as many Airbnb’s are open for business here. While some are quietly operating, some are experiencing enforcement due to complaints. Resident opinion varies and can be strongly in favour or opposed. In the interest of discussing this current trend and how it may play out here in Foothills County, our council asked for administration to investigate how short-term rentals could be regulated by the municipality. This matter may be highly contentious among neighbours, so we will gather more information and decide if this will get onto our staff action list and then eventually lead to public consultation, or not move forward at all.
2020 Federal Carbon Tax cost to You and our Municipality: Feeling the cold from this long winter? You may warm up quickly when you check your January natural gas heating bill and see the Carbon Tax hitting you on this essential resource. Not only will you pay personally on this bill and on fuel, in 2020 the tax will cost Foothills County $350,000 the first year and may increase to $1,000,000 per year, ongoing. We’ve heard that there may be some kind of rebate, but are not sure how this is going to roll out and how much staff time it will take to deal with it. Sigh. The Alberta Provincial Government is fighting for us by bringing on the legal action. Please contact your MLA and MP to share your opinion.
Rural Municipalities of Alberta (RMA): is an independent association comprised of Alberta’s 69 counties and municipal districts, of which Foothills County is a member. Since 1909, RMA has helped rural municipalities achieve strong, effective local government, and has provided advocacy and aggregated business services. Members meet twice a year in Edmonton to bring business forward and collaborate with the full membership, our organization and Provincial Government. Additionally, we meet twice a year with our local RMA Zone 1 members, including the 13 rural municipalities located in Southern Alberta.
For Other News & Updates:
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Best Regards,
Councillor Suzanne Oel
