MOUNTAIN VIEW COUNTY – Mountain View County council has voted to have the municipality withdraw from the Olds Institute (OI).
The move came by way of motion following an in-camera session at the June 3 council meeting, which was held by teleconference. The withdrawal is effective immediately.
Olds Institute is a non-profit community and regional economic development organization. Members include the Town of Olds, the Olds Chamber of Commerce, and Olds College.
The organization gets its funding from O-NET, Mountainview Power and the Town of Olds, said outgoing chairman Bill Hall.
Mountain View County had been a member of the institute since 2016.
Reeve Beattie says there are several reasons for the withdrawal.
“We’ve been considering our membership in it for some time now, probably for the last number of months, and whether it is relevant to what we are doing now,” said Beattie. “We have a number of other venues that we work with Olds in the area of economic development, so it’s a little bit redundant for us to be involved (with OI).”
“And the second thing is we know there are some issues happening between the Town of Olds and Olds Institute and we just feel that we are in a bit of an awkward position representing the county and sitting on the OI board.
“Adding those things up we felt it was probably the best thing for us to withdraw and allow the Town of Olds and Olds Institute to decide what was the best future. Events have overtaken our need to be involved with Olds Institute.”
The county’s only cost related to the Olds Institute was a yearly $10 membership fee, he said.
OI’s outgoing chairman BIll Hall said he is not surprised the county has withdrawn from the organization.
“It’s kind of expected because when there is a legal action you have to weight the pros and cons of remaining,” said Hall. “Until everything gets sorted out I kind of expected the county would step away for the time being.”
The Town of Olds and the OI board have signed a legal forbearance agreement to facilitate the repayment of a $14 million loan made by the municipality to OI.
Hall said OI would welcome the county back at anytime.
“Bruce Beattie’s insight at our meetings was absolutely fantastic, because of course he has a lot more municipal experience that the public members sitting at the board table,” he said.“We would welcome them back with open arms.”
During the June 3 county council meeting, councillors had been scheduled to consider a motion calling for Beattie’s current appointment as the county’s representative on the OI board to be rescinded.
“In recognition of the efforts required for economic development internally and the direction of the county’s economic development program, it is administration’s recommendation that the county refocus its energies on our internal goals and to partner with Olds Institute and the Town of Olds exclusively on individual economic development initiatives that are in alignment with Mountain View County’s economic development strategy,” administration said in a briefing note accompanying that motion.
That motion was withdrawn before the vote on the motion to have the county leave OI was made.
