Central Alberta Economic Partnership (CAEP) officials have responded to a Mountain View County (MVC) notice of cessation of membership.
A letter from CAEP chair Patricia MacQuarrie was sent on April 27 and brought before the county's policies and priorities committee at its recent regularly scheduled meeting on May 3.
Last month county council passed a motion providing one year's notice to withdraw from CAEP.
The motion came after county administration provided a briefing note to council stating, in part, that "the current municipal representative (on CAEP) has had little to no interaction with the organization to date.
"Also, with the recent changes to CAEP committees and working groups, administration questions participation in an organization that has little to no engagement of their members and believes that with the recent changes that they are further moving away from this pertinent part of the organization."
Mountain View County's current annual membership fee in CAEP is $5,229.60 calculated at 40 cents per capita.
"I think it is a great organization and the fundamentals of it and what it is trying to do are good, but I just think they need to revisit the way that they communicate with their members and how they support their membership," county councillor Angela Aalbers said during the motion deliberations.
In her April 27 letter to the county, chair MacQuarrie said CAEP's executive committee of the board of directors "would welcome the opportunity to meet with your council to hear your concerns and work together towards a positive solution."
CAEP's board of directors has given the organization's administration direction to "build a comprehensive communication strategy for our organization," she said.
"The executive committee of the board of directors requests a meeting with the entirety of MVC council at the earliest convenience to discuss options and opportunities to work together going forward.
"We are confident that with further discussion, we can meet MVC's needs and continue to be an important part of the county's economic development strategy."
The policies and priorities committee received the CAEP letter as information.
CAEP is a regional economic alliance that promotes collaborative community economic development, according to its website.
