SADDLE LAKE – The kick off for two crucial projects in Saddle Lake Cree Nation (SLCN) were cause for celebration on Friday, as the community held a ground-breaking ceremony for the 40-Acre subdivision development and broadband projects.
The ground-breaking ceremony was held in Saddle Lake on Sept. 9 and was attended by representatives from various organizations and surrounding communities.
The 40-acre subdivision development and broadband projects are years in the making and will lead to housing for around 480 people and improve wireless access to all homes across Saddle Lake.
Chief of Saddle Lake Cree Nation Terry Cardinal said the projects have been a long-time coming and completing both the subdivision development and broadband projects will help the community in a number of crucial ways - including housing, communication and emergency services.
“We’re very excited to have this happen today, and we’re also happy to have all the different participants in this project to be here with us to celebrate together,” said Cardinal. “This is something that’s going to help our community whether it’s addressing housing and also our communication needs.”
Ken Large, director of Public Works and Housing with Saddle Lake Cree Nation, said in the past, many of the houses on-reserve were built with the Nation’s own sources of revenue. However, many of those sources of revenue are no longer available, leading leaders to ask how they can make things work. For Large, the ground-breaking ceremony is relieving after working through the long planning process.
But, more funding is needed moving forward, according to Large, and a lot of work still needs to be done.
Saddle Lake band councillor Eric Shirt said he believes every citizen in Alberta is entitled to access to good quality infrastructure, and the development of that infrastructure has been long overdue in many communities, such as Saddle Lake.
A 2015 condition assessment on Saddle Lake found its on-reserve population to be over 6,700 with 690 homes. Additionally, the assessment found 214 of the homes were overcrowded, with 406 homes having mold issues, and 376 homes requiring renovations. Based on the assessment, over $116 million is needed to address housing concerns on-reserve.
The population growth is reportedly 2.8 per cent on-reserve, requiring an additional 256 homes to keep up with the growth demand, according to information from SLCN.
Since 2017, SLCN has received a total of $24.6 million, with $13.8 million coming from Indigenous Services Canada and $11 million from CMHC Rapid Housing Initiative and Section 95 Housing Support.
Urban Systems, an interdisciplinary consulting firm composed of professionals in various areas of expertise, will be working with the appropriate organizations to ensure both projects are successful. Laura Creswell, an engineer with Urban Systems, stated the future homes are being designed to be environmentally friendly.
According to Creswell, the design will help the Nation reduce its climate impact, and at the same time, will also reduce costs for annual or monthly fees for its community members.
“It was determined that the best option for the community to create the biggest impact on climate change, as well as on community members costs of living, was to really re-evaluate the materials and the design of the home themselves to try to make them as net-zero as possible,” said Creswell.
The subdivision development will include 80 new lots ready for community housing, which will lead to safe housing for almost 480 people, according to information from SLCN.
Broadband project
According to information from SLCN, there are currently no cellular towers on-reserve, with the closest tower to the Nation located in St. Paul. Internet service, however, is made possible thanks to five towers providing fixed wireless service.
But the current internet services can’t keep up with the growing bandwidth demand in the community.
With the internet upgrade that is taking place, fibre optic lines will be installed to improve wireless access to all homes throughout Saddle Lake. Meanwhile, a cellular tower will be constructed in the centre of Saddle Lake to significantly improve cellular coverage on-reserve.
