CARSTAIRS - Town council has come out in support of a grant proposal being made by the Carstairs Heritage Centre for the creation of a new exhibit about the development of public utilities in the town and area.
Council approved two letters of support for the project during the Jan. 22 council meeting. The centre is owned and operated by the Carstairs and District Historical Society.
“The proposed exhibit will analyze the development of public utilities in Carstairs and area,” centre curator/manager John Cole said in a letter to the town. “It would be helpful for this grant competition for the town to support this project.
“The museum is not asking for additional support, with the exception to give me access to historic council minutes.”
In a letter to the Alberta Museum Association institutional grant jury, Town of Carstairs Mayor Lance Colby said the town is in support of the project, including granting access to historic council minutes.
“The Carstairs council is excited to partner with the Carstairs and District Historical Society with respect to the development of the new exhibit The Development of Public Utilities in Carstairs and District.
“The town welcomes the society to conduct archival research using the council minutes held at the town office which date back to 1905 (when the town was incorporated).
“This research will be a helpful resource for town council with respect to utilities maintenance and future development. We look forward to the opening of this new exhibit and its representation of the rich history of Carstairs and surrounding area.”
The town's chief administrative officer, Rick Blair, provided a second letter to the grant jury.
“I understand that the museum intends on conducting archival research using town council minutes,” said Blair. “The benefit of this is two-fold.
“First, it will educate the public on the work that we do and the system we use to provide citizens of Carstairs with sustainable water, power and sewer services.
“Second, the research provides a knowledge base for operations to understand why our current utilities system is set up the way it is, and what historic decisions were required to put the system as it exists today into place.”
