The Beiseker Airport

Back in the early 1980s, Beiseker Mayor John Richter, deputy mayor Dan Benoit and myself decided to approach the provincial government and ask them to build a airport near our village as part of the provincial municipal airport project initiated by Premier Peter Lougheed. 

The province asked us to create a association of municipalities in our area, which could support a small airport. An airport association was created involving the villages of Acme, Beiseker, and Irricana plus the Municipal District of Rocky View (now, Rocky View County). After much planning and negotiation, a site was chosen for the new airport and the Association became the Airport Commission.

Under the leadership of the provincial Transportation  Department, the new airport was constructed and an AVPA was created for it. The Airport Vicinity Protection Area was designed to make sure that all buildings and all developments around the airport would not interfere with the airport's operation nor would the airport interfere with that development.  Any development in the AVPA and not following its guidelines had no recourse in the case of a disagreement.

The new airport became home to recreational flyers, who built small hangars for their airplanes and enjoyed the camaraderie of the small airport group. It was decided that the Village of Beiseker would provide the day to day maintenance for the airport, and each of the other members of would contribute a small amount supporting that operation.

Each village and the M.D. gave the airport commission a very small amount of money to accomplish this. Those funds, and the money collected from the leaseholders, contributed to the maintenance and operation of the airport.  The airport was still located with the Municipal District, and therefore all development permits and tax collection was to be done by them.  In those early days, the Village's contribution to maintenance and operation costs at the airport equal to about one half of 1% of Beiseker's yearly budget.

After several years, disagreements and legal challenges between the Association, the Municipal District, and one of the tenants at the airport forced the other three members of the Association to withdraw from the commission. This left Beiseker on its own to maintain and operate the airport.

The airport sputtered along for many years seeing little development and almost no maintenance. The village made little investment into the airport, but volunteers stepped up to keep the airport operational.  Eventually, the difficult tenant left the airport and operations there began to improve.

The provincial government eventually asked the village of Beiseker if they would be interested in taking over ownership of the airport. Village council indicated they would not be willing to take over the airport, until the neglected runway had been resurfaced. The province agreed and did resurface the runway and pave the main taxiways.  Rocky View County also agreed to provide a portion of the property tax collected at the airport back to the village for operations and maintenance. 

The future of this important Beiseker facility was looking quite positive!

An airport is an important facility to any community it serves.  Just like an arena, a swimming pool or a library, an airport adds to the fabric of any municipality lucky enough to have one!  When Beiseker was approved to get an airport, many municipalities were very jealous!  Ours was one of the last constructed under the program.  Beiseker has continued operating and maintaining the airport which does bring in some commerce into the village at very little cost.  In fact the cost to taxpayers to operate the airport has been almost nil for many years. 

At present we have a skydiving/parachute facility, a pilot training school, numerous recreational aviation hangars and a café at our airport.  Much of the normal maintenance is still done by volunteers, saving the village more money.

Presently, the Village and the hangar owners are in discussion now to officially subdivide the airport lot into separate hangar lots then explore the possibility of selling some of the lots to hangar owners.  The runways, taxiways and other areas will  still be owned and operated by the Village of Beiseker.  I support this move, and I hope an agreement will be reached in the near future. Stay tuned!

No Water From Beiseker?

A couple of you mentioned to me that you were concerned that the Rocky View Fire Services was recently refused water to fight a fire outside the village.  Last night at our council meeting, we got the whole story from our fire department.

A while back our firefighters and the Rocky View Fire Services responded to a fire east of the village.  The Beiseker Fire Department arrived at the scene first (they were closer) and started work on the fire.  The RVFS soon arrived from Irricana, took over command and joined in fighting the fire.  It was decided that more water might be needed, so water trucks were dispatched to the closest water source which was Beiseker.

Standard Operating Procedures dictates that the municipality providing the water be informed so that adjustments can be made to the pumps and pumping capacity of that municipality's water system if necessary.  Beiseker has one of its pumps in for repair.  Caution must be taken so the people of the village don't completely lose water pressure.

Due a communication glitch, the Rocky View firefighters were unable to contact village staff so they decided to proceed to Irricana to get the extra water.  As it turned out, the extra water was not needed and the water trucks stood down and returned to their fire hall in Irricana.

Beiseker Fire Chief Martens reported to council that the communication glitch has indeed been rectified.  Fire apparatus fighting fires in this area (whether inside or outside the village) are once again able to get water from our hydrants here in the village.  There is also another source of water in Beiseker, the old reservoir behind the post office which has well water and it is untreated.  Unfortunately the pumping capacity there is quite low and filling up one of those huge tanks would take a very long time!

I hope this clears up some of the misunderstandings around this incident.

I'll take this opportunity to give shout-out to all of our firefighters both from the Beiseker Fire Department and from Rocky View.  You folks do an incredible job protecting all of us!

Things Happening Around Beiseker

I'm sorry that I haven't written here for a while.  Here's some catch-up:

Fire Chief Bob Ursu Retires

Council reluctantly accepted Chief Ursu's resignation at our January 23rd council meeting.  Bob has pulled our fire department together and made it a well oiled machine!

Our Fire Department is the envy of many municipalities.  I think I speak for all of Council when I say that we are very proud of Bob Ursu's work and our Fire Department.  In retirement, I hope Bob is able to spend more time with his family and doing other endeavors he enjoys.  Thank you for your service to the Village of Beiseker, Bob!

The Bassano Station Fiasco

I am again on the warpath regarding the burned-out Bassano Station.

It's been sitting there for two years with little or nothing done to it.  It's time for something to happen!  I don't know what that might be, but we can't leave it the way it is!

I've written to our Prime Minister because it was the Federal Government who gave the Centennial Railway Museum society almost $500,000 to simply restore the station building;  the building was actually moved to its current site by a moving company, free of charge!  More on this later.

New Fire Chief

John Martens, our new Fire Chief has assumed his duties in Beiseker.  We hope to see him at our next council meeting to give us his very first report.

Congratulations John!  We look forward to working with you in keeping the Beiseker Fire Department the envy of a large number of municipalities.

Irricana recreates its Economic Development and Tourism Committee 

I was pleased to read that Irricana has started taking steps to get its economic development and tourism committee going again.  This incentive will prove a bonus to that community.

We have seen the affects of Beiseker's economic development groups.  They have had a very positive influence on our business community!  We also have to remember that what's good for Irricana is also good for Beiseker!

Beiseker Village Council's Strategic Plan

Village council met to discuss plans for 2017 a couple of weeks ago.  No surprise that our plans concentrate on repairing our water valves and upgrading our streets.  We have limited funds available so we must be very careful we get the biggest "bang" for everyone's tax buck!  Stay tuned here, too.

Fargo continues on

I'd like to personally thank you all for being so patient and cooperative with the Fargo production team.  They busily turn Beiseker into Eden Valley - and then turn it back to Beiseker just as quickly when filming is completed for that time around!  Well done everyone!

That's all for right now.  I promise to write here more often!

Irricana-Beiseker Trail Development

Today, Beiseker CAO Jo Lambert and I met with Alberta TrailNet officials and representatives from the Town of Irricana to discuss the development of a trail between Irricana and Beiseker, along the abandoned CPR trackway.

I was very impressed with the preparation and design work which has gone into the project so far.  It calls for the building of two foot bridges, a culvert and the surfacing of the pathway between the two municipalities.  The Irricana Lions Club is improving the section of the trail which passes through that town, and they have some great plans for the future of the trail as it passes through that town.

Here in Beiseker, I know there are some folks here trying to re-establish our Trail Creation Group.  Councilor Dave Mackenzie has been keeping council informed of their progress to date.  I understand that at present, they are re-applying for society status. 

All of the Alberta TrailNet land here in Beiseker has been leased to the Centennial Railway Museum Society.  That society appears to have 'disappeared!'  I indicated to those present at the meeting today that Beiseker Council could not support a trail connection between the two communities as long as the Bassano Station and the train yard sits abandoned without a plan of action and a solution! 

I think everyone around the table this morning understood Beiseker's frustration and disillusionment over the TrailNet land here in our village.  Stay tuned.

Gladys Taylor Passes

I was saddened to read that Gladys Taylor passed away on May 31st.

Gladys and her family created and operated Tall Taylor Publishing in Irricana for many years.  She was a successful author, publisher, editor and businesswoman.  In the mid-1980s Gladys gave me the chance to first publish my views and opinions in the original "Write, Ray" in the Five Village Weekly (now the Rocky View Weekly).

My column ran in that weekly paper for over a decade.  We didn't always agree, because we knew we were both right all the time, but she was fair and was always willing to listen.  I respected her for that.  Gladys was a major player in the Canadian publishing industry.

With her passing comes the end of a publishing era dominated by mavericks and risk takers.  My condolences go to her many friends and family.

Quiet (but Happy) Canada Day in Beiseker

Canada Day turned out to be a fairly quiet affair here in the Friendly Village.

My apologies to you if I sent you to the wrong place to celebrate yesterday.  The venue was moved over from Legacy Park to Friendship Park, because there is more room and there are shade trees there.  I think everyone who was looking for the Canada Day celebrations did find us eventually.

The kids had fun doing the passport game.  Eight stations were set up and the kids had to visit all of them to get a prize.  Our Beiseker Fire Department came over to show off their fire truck and their first response vehicle.   The Alberta Health Services folks shut down our BBQ and our face painting, but everyone had a good time anyway.

The big celebration around here was held in Irricana.  I was unable to take part in the festivities there, but I was able to watch their fantastic fireworks display last night!  Good on ya, Irricana!

Answers to my trivia questions;  Canada started out with four provinces back in 1867.  They were Quebec, Ontario, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia.  Prince Edward Island was supposed to be there too, but they held out, wanting some special treatment because they were so small.  They did join a while later, after their concerns were addressed.   Newfoundland was the last province to join Canada in 1949, making an even ten provinces.

A Tale of Two Trails

I am excited about the prospect of two trail systems being created in and around our village! 

The first trail system would follow a route around Beiseker itself, connecting many important parts of the village.  A meeting was held the other evening to discuss the re-organization of the committee to spearhead the project. 

Councillor Dave McKenzie is the Council Liaison for this committee, and I'm looking forward to his report regarding this project.  He'll be reporting during his councillor's report at our next meeting.  If you are interested in becoming a part of this pathways project, call and give your name to the Village Office (403-947-3774) and they'll make sure Dave gets it.

The other project is also pretty awesome!  It involves the creation of a pathway between Beiseker and Irricana along the old CPR right-of-way.  I attended a preliminary meeting the other day and I was most impressed with what I heard. 

This would be a pathway for non-motorized traffic.  There are many question which need to be answered, but we've made a start here, too.  Right now, I'm the Council Liaison on this proposal, so if you're interested in helping here, get me your name in the comments below, or through the Contact Form at right. 

And stay tuned on both of these exciting projects!

Village Updates: Fire Protection, Snow, Water & the Bassano Station

We had a great council meeting Tuesday night (November 12).  A number of issues and concerns were discussed.  Here's a few of the things we talked about.

• We reaffirmed our policy that all the village's fire hydrants will be systematically checked by our fire department, with consultation with Public Works. 
• We discussed our very icy streets and sidewalks, and suggested ways that we can make it easier for everyone to get around during the winter months.  We may have to look into how Public Works removes ice and snow from streets and sidewalks, especially at intersections.
• We talked about the placement (or not) of the Bassano Station on its foundation.  It appears work has halted again on the project and it sits there looking forlorn once more.  There doesn't appear to be much the Village can do about this project but we will endeavor to find out its status.
• We talked about a letter from the Town of Irricana to the Aqua7 Regional Water Services Commission, noting that the town refuses to pay the 10% increase in water prices levied by the Town of Drumheller.  I do not understand what they expect to accomplish with this move!  Aqua7, which includes Irricana, will have to pay the shortfall on Irricana's behalf.
• We decided to prepare a mutual aid agreement for fire protection, which we will present to our neighbour municipalities. 

Overall, a great meeting.  I think we addressed some very crucial issues in Beiseker.  Now we need to keep an eye on the solutions to see that they do what we hope they do!

Emergency Planning

Lac-Mégantic, Québec rail disaster

In light of the widespread flooding in southern Alberta and the railway disaster in Lac-Mégantic, Québec, some of you are wondering if our village has an emergency plan. As a matter fact, we do.

It was created a few years ago, by a group of village officials and interested community members through a series of workshops held at the Beiseker Community Centre.  We were presented with different hypothetical scenarios, and we had to plan a course of action.  These "tabletop exercises" focused on keeping the people of Beiseker as safe as possible.

We reviewed scenarios involving blizzards, flash floods, railway problems, and highway accidents.

Copies of the plan we created were given to the fire department and to the village office.  We ran a couple of mock disasters to make sure our plan did work.

As part of the emergency plan, we stocked emergency supplies and provided an alternate power source for the Community Centre.  We made arrangements with local businesses to access their establishments after hours for emergency supplies if required, as well.  And finally, a mutual aid agreement was created between Beiseker and Irricana so that if one municipality needed to evacuate, the other community would accommodate them.

All of this took place more than five years ago.  Much has changed in Beiseker since then.  I personally believe that it's time we took this plan down from the shelf, read it over, and revise it to reflect what's happening today.

Would our existing plan work?  Yes it would, but it could work much more smoothly if it were brought up to date!

My View on the Mountain View Gazette article

The article in an earlier post came from this week's edition of the Mountain View Gazette.  I was interviewed for it by Ms Isaac last week.  I think it's a fantastic article!  It gets the word out just how much silliness we've had to put up with from the provincial government over these past ten years or more.  We in Beiseker have had enough!

One thing not made totally clear in the article is that the Aqua 7 Regional Water Services Commission is made up of seven municipalities: Rocky View County, Kneehill County, Linden, Carbon, Acme, Irricana and Beiseker.  We are all facing this issue of high water costs and extra commission charges as we are all members of the commission.  Administration fees and debt servicing charges are paid for out of general renevue in each municipality.  Rocky View County has actually paid all those extra fees even though it hasn't sold one drop of water yet!

The leaking pipes and the poorly operating meters are purely Beiseker problems and I believe we are well on the way to solving them!   Coast-to-Coast Mechanical has installed more than 40 of the almost 300 meters already and Public Works Foreman Bill has detected and repaired many leaks!

Please, take time to read the article.  Thank you to the Gazette and Jennifer Isaac for bringing this story to the attention of even more Albertans.

Council Debate

Last Monday night we had a very interesting Beiseker Village Council meeting!  A delegation had asked to address council regarding issues with the Beiseker Fire Department (BFD).  Their presentation was almost derailed when one of the "back-bench" delegates began yelling and name-calling. 

His points, no matter how valid they may have been, were negated by his behaviour!  Order was re-established and the original presenter made her points and comments on the issues.  I was most impressed by her demeanor and that of the rest of her supporters.

One point which interested me considerably was the perception that the volunteer members of the BFD had no insurance coverage if they were injured on a call out.  I am in the process of checking this out.  It seems to me only natural that those who give up their time and energy and risk their safety to be a part of our fire department be suitably covered by some kind of insurance. Stay tuned on this one.  (Dec. 20th follow-up:  Fire Department Insurance and Candy Canes)

Another point was that it was their perception that the Village Council was dragging their feet in drawing up an agreement with the County of Rocky View to share the responsibility of fire protection in this northeast corner of the county, including Beiseker.  I think Mayor Rowe made it very clear that negotiations have been actively going on for many months and will continue until a suitable compromise has been reached. 

Our situation is not the same as Irricana's.  The Irricana Fire Department was always a part of the North East Rocky View Fire Association (NERFA) and simply moved over into Rocky View's new fire protection program.  Beiseker, on the other hand, left NERFA with much bad feelings and anguish more than 20 years ago.  Beiseker is now starting back at square one!  

A negotiated agreement will be arrived at, but it must be in the best interest of the village and the county.  But it will happen!

The Trail Net Fiasco

You've probably heard by now that the proposed trail between Beiseker and Irricana was turned down by the County.  Many were shocked and amazed by this decision.  I wasn't.  The rejection goes to actions taken back in history and Trail Net is going to have to do some major damage control before projects like this will proceed.

About a hundred years ago the farmers in this area wanted a rail line to ship their grain to market.  To that end many of them almost gave a piece of their land to the CPR to build their track on.  The deal was that they would provide land for the CPR right-of-way and the railway would provide train service to Calgary basically forever.  Forever wasn't as long as those farm families thought it would be!

The CPR abandoned the rail line and gave the land to the trail people to build a trail across the prairie.  This was done as many municipalities and individuals were in the middle of negotiations to take the land back from the railway and return it to its original use!

Farm families who expected to be able to get back this strip of land which their ancestors had almost donated to the railway instead found a public pathway running through their fields!  This has led to some very hard feelings between the trail folks and their farmer neighbours.  One group of farm families actually buried a car in protest after the car manufacturing company donated cash to help establish the trails.

In some parts of this great country, abandoned railways have indeed been turned into excellent trails and pathways and some day that may happen here.  But before that happens here, the trail folks have to become aware of the past history and make a plan to overcome these hard feelings. Downloading the problem to the locals isn't the answer.

Issue #3: The Beiseker Airport

I am very pleased to announce that the Village of Beiseker has purchased the Beiseker Airport, a facility valued at more than 1.5 million dollars, from the Provincial Government for the sum of $1.00! Beiseker council insisted on two conditions before taking over ths airport;

1. That the facility be brought up to standard by the province and;
2. That the airport never become a burden to ratepayers here in the village.

Both conditions have been met!

The airport has the POTENTIAL of bringing hundreds of thousands of dollars of business into the Beiseker area and the village in particular!

It is my intention to work with economic development groups and the Chambers of Commerce to explore these potentials. It is the opinion of most aviation experts that Beiseker's airport has huge economic potential for the region. I intend to help realize that potential!

It is also my intention to recreate the Beiseker Airport Commission to advise council on the airport's operation. Rocky View County has already agreed to take part in such a commission and is now turning over the collected tax dollars to the operation of the airport!

 I would also like to see the Town of Irricana and the Village of Acme also rejoin the commission!

Issue #1: Water! Water! Water!

Beiseker has many water problems.

 Our drinking water is supplied by the Kneehill Regional Water Services Commission from Drumheller. We buy water from the Town of Drumheller, then pipe it to Kirkpatrick where it is treated and distributed to Carbon, Acme, Linden, Irricana and us.

 The counties of Kneehill and Rocky View are also part of the system. The system was built about 6 years ago funded by the province, the federal government and the municipalities. Each level of government contributed about one-third of the full cost of the system. The municipalities are finding it hard to pay their portion!

Every attempt by the Commission to sell water has been blocked by the Town of Drumheller! That, coupled with water conservation programs have reduced the sale of water throughout the area.

Similar water projects around Alberta have been funded by the provincial government up to 90% of their cost! A water project east of us recently received funding of over 80% of the cost!

I will continue to fight to get Beiseker and the rest of the Kneehill Regional Water Services Commission an equitable funding arrangement, as they rightly deserve!