Nine people attended Mountain View County Deputy Reeve Patricia McKean's open house at the Dogpound Rodeo Grounds Hall on Oct. 22.Issues discussed at the 90-minute information session included concerns about truck traffic on some roads and the need to reduce speeds in Water Valley.“I thought the meeting was good,” said McKean. “I thought more people would come out but we just had the Acme Road meeting last week and we had a huge turnout at that, so I met with a lot of constituents there.“Tonight there was a lot of good information shared. The Big Prairie Bridge is a big item in this area so I knew there would be comments on that.”The construction of the new bridge is now scheduled to be completed by Dec. 30, she told the meeting.“We will be trying to have something planned to have the community out for the opening,” she said.The original bridge was destroyed in a still-unsolved arson fire.Larry Mizera, the president of the Water Valley Community Association, told McKean that there are several projects being considered for the community.One project would be the construction of an outdoor skating rink this winter. The community is asking the county for $3,000 in funding for the 120 foot by 80 foot rink, he said.“I'm going to take that to council to look at approving funding for the outdoor hockey arena,” said McKean.Mizera said there are ongoing concerns with speeding in Water Valley, and the community would like to see the county help address that problem.He suggested the county may want to make use of a speed indicator board to let drivers know their speed. Sundre RCMP has been using one of the electronic devices and Mirera suggested the county borrow it for Water Valley.“I think that is maybe a good thing for the county to look at to remind people of the speed on some roads,” said McKean. “There is some concern with speeding, and I think we have that all over the county.”Mizera also said Water Valley would like to undertake some playground upgrades in the community, at a cost of between $20,000 and $30,000, and would like the county to consider helping out financially.The community will be fundraising for that project, he said.Longtime division resident John Pawson said he would like to see the Big Prairie Road receive some maintenance upgrades once the new bridge is open.McKean says division residents unable to attend last week's meeting or wishing to raise concerns should feel free to get in touch with her.“Contact me any time and I'm always interested in talking to people. Just give me a call,” she said.
