We've learned a lot, Olds mayor says

“We’ve got to find new, creative ways to keep our youth engaged in sports and activities," Muzychka said during a year-end interview. 

“I know the health officials all want us to stay in our houses right now to bend this curve, which I understand. But we’ve got to get creative in how we keep our kids active and how they learn and things like that.  

"There’s a whole bunch of brand new things coming on the horizon. I don’t know what they look like, but I’ve always been really good at thinking on my feet and changing and morphing and finding different ways, so I’m confident that the town can do the same,” he added.  

Muzychka said the COVID-19 pandemic underlined the wisdom of the town’s decision a few years ago to revise its emergency management plan and fire department master plan. 

“Both of those plans have shone in this past year,” he said. 

Muzychka reiterated a point town officials made earlier that last year several municipalities phoned Olds officials to ask how they handled the COVID outbreak. 

Muzychka said another great accomplishment late last year was that council managed to pass a 2021 budget with a zero per cent tax increase. 

He conceded however that the town was able to hit that target with the help of some provincial grant money. 

Nonetheless, Muzychka is proud of that accomplishment, especially in light of the fact they still managed to find room in the budget for a full-time sargeant for Olds RCMP. 

He said they got to that goal without having to cut any staff, although he said some layoffs were taken by Aquatic Centre staff in order to access other programs. 

Some staff cuts were made, but only by attrition as some staffers left or retired, he said. Sadly, planning department employee Jane Archer, who worked for the town for about 15 years, also passed away.  

Also, Muzychka said for the “first time in a long time” there will no increases to the salaries or benefits of town staff members. 

Council also cut back on the spending for beautification, such as the planting of flowers.  

Muzychka is confident that despite that decision, the town will still look good. 

“I have full confidence in our parks department to make this town as beautiful as it always was with considerably less money, so just learning to do things in a little bit different way,” he said. 

Muzychka listed the town’s ability to hammer out a revised intermunicipal development plan (IDP) as another highlight of 2020. 

He noted that plan calls for the town to annex three quarters of county land. 

“We set up our intermunicipal collaboration framework back in January with Mountain View County,” he said. "In a year we were able to develop an IDP. To go (through) those two steps in a year is a pretty monumental accomplishment.” 

The town’s relationship with Mountain View County, including the ability to draw up mutually beneficial IDPs has impressed the provincial government and the Alberta Urban Municipalities Association, he said.

Due to pandemic restrictions, in the fall, a “soft opening” of the town’s new $3.6 million Rotary Athletic Park was held instead of a full-blown official opening. 

That soft opening consisted of an online video highlighting various aspects of the facility and featuring speeches from various dignitaries and sports association reps. 

Muzychka is hopeful that an official opening of the facility can be held some time this year. However, he said if that’s not possible, due to COVID, organizers will try to do so the following year. 

Toward the end of 2020, the town considered enacting a bylaw which would have made masks mandatory in all buildings owned or leased by the town as well as in “public indoor spaces” or “public vehicles.”  

Council tabled that bylaw after it received heated opposition by some during a virtual council meeting. 

Shortly afterward, that effort became moot anyway as the province made the wearing of masks mandatory. 

Muzychka said he was glad to see the mask bylaw debate over, at least for now. 

"It was a tough one,” he said. “That’s more divided than I’ve ever seen our town before. People were getting quite testy and that was never good.

"So yes, I am glad that’s in the rear view mirror. I’m glad the province took the initiative to take over that and do it right.” 

Overall, Muzychka is pleased with the way the town dealt with COVID. 

“I think we’ve learned so much over the past 12 months,” he said. “You know, something happened that nobody really fathomed and we fumbled at the beginning, but I think we’ve got some really, really good plans in place now. 

"You know, the province has had some tough times and numbers have spiked, but we always learn from these experiences, so I think we’ll be a better municipality going forward.”