Council approved user fee increases for a number of town-run facilities, including the Aquaplex and Badlands Community Facility.

There will be a 2 per cent increase to recreation access and facility rental fees, which includes admission and membership fees, ice and ball diamond rentals, as well as conference and room rentals.

Under the increase, an adult multi-facility membership will increase from $647.50 per year to $660.50 – an increase of $1.08 per month.

“It is always a difficult decision to raise fees, however, 2 per cent is comparative to inflation, which reflects expected increases in operational costs,” said acting CAO Barb Miller.

“We aim to offer a variety of fun sporting options for the public and service fees are an

unfortunate necessity to maintain our facilities,” explained Darren Goldthorpe Manager of Recreation, Arts and Culture. “We offer Toonie activities, free public skating and are going to be

revisiting the Recreation Fee Assistance Program to ensure that the facilities are accessible to

as many people as possible, regardless of their financial abilities.”

The new fees will come into effect on Tuesday, January 1.

The Town of Drumheller is on a list of communities to receive federal funds to replace the flood mapping for the community.

     On Monday, December 17, the federal Government announced it is providing $8.7 million through the National Disaster Mitigation Program for 18 projects. They include new or replacement flood mapping for Drumheller, Medicine Hat, Siksika Nation, Red Deer, and more than 100 kilometres of the North Saskatchewan River, including Edmonton.

“Drumheller is changing the channel on flood readiness. This mapping project, which has been completed by the provincial government, is one of the steps Drumheller is taking towards becoming a flood ready community,” stated Barb Miller Deputy CAO for the town of Drumheller.

The province is contributing more than $5 million to the projects as part of the cost-sharing agreement.

“Our government is committed to investing in flood resilience to better protect Albertans where they live and work,” said Shannon Phillips, Minister of Environment and Parks. “The provincial and federal funding for flood mapping and community risk assessments will help us build safer communities over the long term and ensure Alberta is better prepared for severe weather events in the future.”

Randy Boissonnault, Member of Parliament for Edmonton Centre, on behalf of the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, said “The Government of Canada, in partnership with provinces and territories, is committed to reducing the impacts of flooding on Canadians by investing in projects that allow communities to identify, plan for, and reduce flood risks,of Alberta better prepare for and respond to floods.”