With a provincewide review of the legislation governing municipal governments now underway, recently appointed Minister of Municipal Affairs Ken Hughes says he wants input from West Central Alberta rural councils.
During a meeting with Alberta Association of Municipal Districts and Counties (AAMDC) central zone members in Olds, Hughes said the review and updating of the Municipal Government Act (MGA) will take rural municipal council views into account.
"I am asking people to really weigh in, to get involved and get across their points of view,î Hughes told the Gazette following the meeting. "This is a great chance for people to bring new ideas to the table and we are very open to that. We are very interested.
"There is a lot of interest on the part of municipalities. The mayors, reeve and councillors have just been elected so they have a good three and a half years or so to do the things that they want to do to look after their constituents. We can work together and try to make the changes to the MGA so they can use those new tools to serve their constituents for most of their terms.î
The Municipal Government Act sets out the governance model for all municipal governments in the province, including towns, villages, counties and districts, as well as rules and regulations for the operation and function of municipal councils.
Topics in the MGA review include assessment and taxation, governance and administration, and planning and development, but not local bylaws, existing local municipal budgets or provincial grant programs.
Hughes was appointed minister of Municipal Affairs in Dec. 2013.
Mountain View County councillor Al Kemmere, who is the county's representative on AAMDC, attended the Feb. 7 Olds meeting at the Pomeroy Inn.
Mountain View County and other AAMDC member municipalities will be providing input into the MVG review over the next months, he said.
During the Olds meeting, Hughes also discussed seniors' housing needs and plans to improve that housing over the three years.
"We have a lot of demand for seniors' housing in the province and we have a lot of seniors' housing,î said Hughes. "We are going to be working hard to ensure we build enough housing for seniors that is modern.
"Not all our seniors' housing is up to date and some of it is dated going back to the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s. We were talking about how we might meet the needs of seniors in Alberta today because obviously there is a lot of folks who need housing.î
Asked if he was able to give AAMDC members at the meeting any concrete commitments regarding plans for seniors' housing, he replied, "At this stage is a more general commitment and general overview. As a new minister I have a chance to come in and look over all of the housing that the province owns and make sure that we actually do have enough housing for seniors. There's a lot of work to be done on that.î
Coun. Kemmere says the AAMDC is in support of improving seniors' housing.
"He (Hughes) identified a multi-billion dollar need coming forward for some of those buildings that are in the 30- to 50-year-old range and the need to try to address that from a long-range planning point of view, from a proactive point of view,î said Kemmere
"Some of these facilities that we are trying to move people into, people don't want to move into them any more because they just don't meet the needs of the public any more and he acknowledged that. We are supportive of taking a provincewide look to this thing from a long-range point of view. The group that was here (at the central zone AAMDC meeting) is very supportive of that.î
Hughes also met with town and county officials in Sundre on Feb. 7, discussing flood mitigation and planning.
"I am asking people to really weigh in, to get involved and get across their points of view."Ken HughesMunicipal Affairs Minister
