ELK POINT – Recent dangerous dog incidents that left the community reeling and so far have resulted in one dog being euthanized and the Town of Elk Point going through the courts to have a second dog put down have led council to consider the overhaul of Animal Control Bylaw 871/23, which has been found to be not easily enforceable.
Administration has contacted no less than eight other Alberta communities, from Grimshaw in the northwest to Taber in the southeast, and ranging in size from the City of Edmonton to the County of Vermilion River, developing a spreadsheet that outlines regulations on dog attacks, restricted dogs on and off the owner’s property, seizure and impounding, serious injuries and wounds, animal control officer authority and owner responsibilities.
Along with the spreadsheet, the Nov. 25 council agenda contained printouts of the bylaws from those four communities, as well as from Brooks, Camrose, Devon and Oyen. Copies of the provincial Animal Protection Act and Dangerous Dogs Act were also included.
The wealth of information showed Deputy Mayor Jason Boorse that “A lot of municipalities tackle the issue very differently.”
Coun. Tim Smereka found the information “Intense and pretty encompassing,“ and Coun. Wanda Cochrane found communities “Very similar but very different. We need to have some teeth.”
Mayor Parrish Tung, who joined the meeting online from Edmonton where he attended a meeting earlier in the day, cautioned that, “Before we look at a bylaw, we need to decide if we are making a bylaw biased toward a dog owner or a resident.”
The deputy mayor agreed that this may be “The most contentious bylaw in a community,” and recommended it go to a public hearing before being passed.
CAO Ken Gwozdz agreed that this is “a very sensitive issue. I think you want to take your time with it. It’s going to take some time, and it will be an interesting bylaw” when completed, which he feels will not be until into the new year.
A motion was approved to contact the town’s solicitors to come up with a draft bylaw.
Election procedures
New amendments are included in the draft of a new Election Bylaw, including the need for candidates to submit Level 1 and Level 2 criminal record checks with their nomination form, with any costs incurred to be paid by the Town of Elk Point, and must be in compliance with sections with sections 22 and 23 of the Local Authorities Election Act and Bill 20 amendments.
The nomination fee has increased from $50 to $75.
Council passed first reading of the bylaw, which must be adopted by Dec. 31, and will return to the Dec. 9 meeting after review by the town’s solicitor.
Delegations
Two delegations were part of the Nov. 25 council meeting.
Council met in closed session with James Davies of DCG Executive Search, and following a second closed session at the end of the meeting, agreed to enter into a contract with that company.
The second delegation was Portage College Community Adult Learning Program (CALP) supervisor Michelle Dargis, who had previously met with both the Town of St. Paul and County of St. Paul councils after being approached by STEP director Linda Sallstrom regarding a newcomer support program.
She subsequently hired Christine Warkentin as a newcomer support navigator and who has now developed a program to assist newcomers. Sandie Bishop, Elk Point CALP coordinator, provides courses at the Elk Point Municipal Library, and Dargis said, “is the entrance point” for newcomers interested in the program.
Provincials funding
The F. G. Miller boys’ volleyball team travelled to the 2A volleyball provincials in Peace River from Nov. 21 to 23, and council approved a request for $500 in funding for their journey north.
Janitorial service
With the Town’s contract for janitorial service for the administration building and the Elk Point Municipal Library now expired, council studied that company’s quote which included a 14 per cent raise, and agreed to advertise the service for tenders in January 2025.
Financial variances
In his monthly report, CAO Gwozdz had a list of seven financial variances ranging from the cost of advertising for the town’s Fire Bylaw to repairs of the waterline break in October, a refund on a cemetery plot and the cost of repairs following vandalism at the recreation park campground washrooms. He noted that the mayor and council “Work very hard to keep expenses down, and the vandalism is very frustrating. The town gets calls, and it costs the taxpayers money.”
On the other hand, the ACP programs resulting in the Buffalo Trail North and South Intermunicipal Area Structure Plans, both the subject of public hearings on Dec. 9 at the Northern Lights Library System, are both paid for with provincial dollars from industry, with “No town money used.”