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Last updateMon, 30 Sep 2024 10am

New and old faces elected for area councils

    After a busy Monday night, area residents now know who will be leading them into the next four years of municipal governance.
 

Big Valley
    There was no election in Big Valley.    Incumbents Gail Knudson and Lois Miller, and newcomer Ken Johnson were awarded seats on council through acclamation.
 

Carbon
    Marty Morgan, who ran for his term on council, took the top spot in the Carbon election, earning 124 votes. Incumbents Richard Ekman and Mike Still were close behind with 122 and 116 votes, respectively, earning their seats back.    
    Newcomers Steve Reynen and Marie Kooiman were also successful, earning 93 and 73 votes.
 

Delia
    Challenger Dawn Bancroft earned the most votes in Delia with 104, followed by incumbent Dennis Thordarson with 81 and incumbent John Rogers  with 49 votes. The three will comprise the Delia Council for the next four years.
    Of Delia's estimated 151 eligible voters, 123 filled out ballots.
 

Hussar
    The Hussar Village Council will include newcomer Tim Muir, who earned 78 votes, Tim Frank with 77 votes, and Corey Fisher with 61.
    Incumbent Bruce Kaufman, who served as mayor last term was not elected for another term.
 

Morrin
    Former Mayor Suzanne Lacher was the only incumbent to retain her seat, earning 46 votes. Joining her on  Morrin Village Council are Howard Helton, with 42 votes, and David Macleod, with 50 votes.
    Eighty-nine electors cast their votes of a possible 171.
 

Munson
    Laura Cawiezel, Kerry McLellan, and Robert Spencer won their seats through acclamation.
 

Rockyford
    Out of 242 eligible voters, 139 turned up for the election in Rockyford.
    Darcy Burke, who served as mayor last term held the most votes with 97, followed by newcomer Dalia Cheshire at 92. Incumbent Leah Smith filled the third seat with 85 votes and Jayne Koester the fourth with 80 votes.
    The final seat was narrowly won by incumbent Jerry Katterhagen with 71 votes over Wayne Beerling, who earned 70.
 

Standard
    In Standard, six candidates put their names forward for the village’s five council seats.
    Incumbents Alan Larsen, Ron Corbeill, and Adam Sommerfeldt won their seats back. Newcomers    Martin Gauthier and Joseph Pedersen filled the village's final two seats.
 

Kneehill County
    Kneehill County’s seats were decided through acclamation. Incumbents Brian Holsworth  for Division 1, Carol Calhoun for Division 2, Jerry Wittstock  for Division 3, Greg Keiver for Division 4, Bob Long  for Division 5, Ken Hoppins for Division 6, and Bobby Painter  for Division 7 will serve another four years on the Kneehill County Council.
 

Starland County
    In Division 1 Murray Marshall was acclaimed; in Division 2 Steve Wannstrom was elected with 79 votes; in Division 3 Robert Sargent was acclaimed; in Division 4 Allen Avramenko was elected with 101, and in Division 5, Barrie Hoover retained his seat with 59 votes.
 

Wheatland County
    Most of the Wheatland Council seat were acclaimed. Alice Booth of Hussar (Division 1), Berniece Bland of Strathmore (Division 4), Brenda Knight of Strathmore (Division 5), Glenn Koester of Rockyford (Division 6) and Ben Armstrong of Hussar (Division 7) were all acclaimed.        Division 2 was hotly contest between six candidates. Incumbent Ken Sauve stepped down this election. Rex Harwood of Strathmore was elected with 74 votes.
    Divison 3 was also contested. Incumbent Donald Vander Velde earned 157 votes to win his seat back.
 

Golden Hills School Division
    In Ward 1 Barry Kletke was elected, in Ward 2 David Price was Acclaimed, In Ward 3, Drumhller Sherri  Nielsen was acclaimed, in  Ward 4 Joyce Bazant and Larry Tucker were acclaimed and in Ward 5 Alan Larsen was  elected.
 

Prairie Land Regional Division
    Most seats in Praire Land were acclaimed. Holly Smith, (Ward 1, Berry Creek), Dean Hansen (Ward 2, Hanna Rural and Youngstown), Marsha Tkach (Ward 3 Veteran), Barry Davis (Ward 3, Consort and Altario), Lyle Cawiezel (Ward 4, Morrin), and Ed Brinkman (Ward 4, Delia) were all to their seats acclaimed.
    The only election in the school division occurred in Ward 2, Hanna Urban. To fill the two seats for the ward, Angie Warwick and Jada Hill were elected with 430 and 355 votes, respectively.
 

Christ the Redeemer School Division
    There was one election in the division. Mark Chung  won his first seat with 275 votes.


Drumheller votes

   The results are in! All 28 polling stations have reported in.

   Incumbents Jay Garbutt and Tom Zariski lead the polls with 1070 votes (13%) and 980 (12%), respectively.

   Challenger Patrick Kolafa (962, 12%) came in third, followed by incumbent Lisa Hansen-Zacharuk (956, 12%). Tara McMillan took the fifth council seat with 951 votes (12%)

   Incumbent Sharel Shoff, who has 834 votes (10%), narrowly beat former mayor Bryce Nimmo (828, 10%) for the final council seat.

   Jenny Dannhauer was close behind with 769 votes (10%). Kalon Sykes and Crystal Jensen fell behind with 330 votes (4%) and 306 votes (4%), respectively.

   For the Christ the Redeemer trustee vote, challenger Mark Chung dramatically overtook incumbent Paul Andrew, winning 275 votes to 124.

   The results are not official until Friday, October 25, at noon, but for the moment it looks as though the next Drumheller Town Council will consist of Jay Garbutt, Lisa Hansen-Zacharuk, Patrick Kolafa, Tara McMillan, Sharel Shoff, and Tom Zarsiki.

MLA takes lead on problem coyotes

    MLA Rick Strankman is hoping to get some action on urban coyotes in Drumheller and is talking to the Alberta Environment to learn what can be done.  
     Urban coyotes have been an issue in the town limits of Drumheller and other area towns. Strankman says run-ins with residents appear to be growing.
    “The Town of Drumheller is once again experiencing a higher than average number of coyote encounters within the town limits,” states a release from Rick Strankman.
    Bylaw enforcement officer Greg Peters says the number of complaints appear to be stable. Last year he was able to trap six animals, and scared a few away. He continues to set live traps in problem areas.
    Strankman’s release states he is in contact with Alberta Environment on the issue.
    “My office is working with Environment and Sustainable Resource Development about this issue and will be updating what options will be available to deal with this issue,” it states.
    There are a number of measures residents can take to help minimize their contact with wildlife. One of the most important is to discourage coyotes from having a reason to come to your neighbourhood. This includes eliminating sources of easy food. This could mean covering garbage, not leaving fruit and vegetables or pet food accessible. It is also important to eliminate areas where animals can seek cover or make dens.
    Supervising and keeping pets indoors is importance.  For the safety of children, make sure play areas do not have easy areas for animals to hide. To keep wild animals out of your yard make sure your gates are closed and fences are in good repair.


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