As discussed during a special Town Council Meeting held Monday, December 19, 2016, water rates will be increased by 2 percent for wastewater and 5 percent for water in 2017.
    According to Director of Corporate Services, Barb Miller, the difference people in the community will be seeing on their water bills will be minimal. There will be approximately a difference of $2.03 for wastewater and $3.16 for water for a house that uses twenty cubic meters average every month. This would be close to an average of $37.88 per year.
    Mayor Terry Yemen said, “All municipalities will be in charge for themselves so all municipalities have been advised to be in full recovery. This 5 percent increase is based on recovery by 2020.”
    During the December 19 Council Meeting, two options were discussed. One, an increase of 1.5 percent to wastewater and 3 percent increase to water, the other an increase of 2 percent to wastewater and 5 percent to water. The difference between these 2 would be an average of $14 per year for the average household.
    Councillor Jay Garbutt said during the Council Meeting, “We have been in this total cost recovery journey for almost ten years and that by dropping the increase by a token amount, this only delays the path to total recovery. The token amount being a difference of under fourteen dollars a year. This amount is no real help to the ratepayers. If, as a Council, you seriously want to address how the economic times we find ourselves in are affecting the community, let’s do that, but let’s not pretend that saving people fourteen dollars a year on their water bill is helping in any way.”
    Miller said that not increasing the water fees puts the town farther behind with a loss of $45-50,000. This, in turn, pushes the town farther from total recovery, changing the previous hopes of recovery by 2020 to 2022.
    Mayor Yemen said there is hope that the Town of Drumheller will be able to supply water to surrounding areas in the future.
    The Town of Drumheller utility service is fully rate supported and not funded through property tax. Annual rate adjustments are necessary to cover increased operating costs associated with providing the service and to fund future capital improvements which will ensure the Town has adequate emergency funds for unexpected costs.

    Local man, Garry Nargang, received an early Christmas present thanks to Chinook Financial, and his reaction is going viral.
    The divisions of Connect First Credit Union has made a difference to some of its clients in 13 communities by paying some of their bills to help relieve the stress of the holiday season. This is the second year for their Making Money Make a Difference campaign and they have made a video of the experience.
    “It can be difficult to not worry about bill and mortgage payments in the tough economy faced by so many of our communities,” said Scot Hadden, President of Chinook Financial. “We wanted to give back in a way that lets our members focus on what the holidays are all about: family and friends.”
    In Drumheller, Nargang walked into Chinook Financial and was told the Credit Union would be making a payment to his credit card and a car payment. His reaction is featured in the five-minute video that is being shared online.

    “It was a good shock,” Nargang tells The Mail, adding the last time he received a present this nice was, “the day I married Fran (his wife).”

    He has watched the video and enjoyed it. He has nothing but accolades for the Credit Union.
    “I think they do so much for the community that we don’t see,” said Nargang. “They asked me why I come here, and I said because of the service.”
    Chinook Financial associate Sheresse Thompson had the honour of informing Nargang that he was the recipient of the Making Money Make a Difference campaign and it was emotional.
    “What an amazing thing,” said Thompson. ”I mean this is what we do, we pay it forward to our members and help people when they need us. Seeing the video brings up all that emotion again, but being there on the day and doing it is even more powerful than the video, if you believe that, and it is days like this that I live for.”
    What makes the experience even more powerful is that in a community the size of Drumheller relationships are very close.
    “Our members are our friends and family and people we see day in and day out. For me, I grew up with all of them, known them since I was a kid, so it is very much family and being able to do something for them very much warms my heart.”

To see the video, click here.