The Town of Drumheller is proud to announce it has been awarded grant funding through the provincial Municipal Stimulus Program. This grant funding will be allocated to Drumheller’s Downtown Plaza, complementing the Downtown Area Revitalization Plan (DARP), a 15 year vision and strategy to catalyze the revitalization of downtown Drumheller.
“The past 13 months have been incredibly challenging for Albertans, as well as municipalities,” begins Nate Horner, MLA Drumheller-Stettler. “This program will help drive growth in Drumheller, and other communities across the province. I am proud to share that 29 projects in our constituency of Drumheller-Stettler have been approved, directing millions in investments into our local communities.”
The Municipal Stimulus Program (MSP) was announced by the province in July 2020, with applications coming forward in October. This program provides additional capital infrastructure funding to municipalities with the primary objective to sustain and create local jobs, enhance provincial competitiveness and productivity, position communities to participate in future economic growth, and reduce municipal red-tape to promote job-creating private sector investment. Drumheller was awarded the funding earlier this year.
“We are so thankful for this funding,” shares Mayor Heather Colberg. “Our vision for our downtown is coming together and we are very excited! This funding allocated to the development of our new downtown plaza will help our downtown become the vibrant, welcoming and inclusive area that Drumheller deserves.”
Drumheller was awarded $940,000 through the MSP. Conceptual designs are being worked on already and will be presented to the public this spring for feedback. The construction for the plaza will commence this summer with completion targeted before the end of 2021.

Kneehill County council approved a new policy during the regular Tuesday, March 23 council meeting which will allow rural residents to redesignate unnamed roads to ensure better service for deliveries, and emergencies.
The policy followed a request from a rural ratepayer who was experiencing difficulties receiving deliveries to their rural address due to living off one of these unnamed roads, and concerns this could lead to difficulties in emergency situations.
“The benefits of this policy is residents who currently live on an unnamed road will have better servicing to their property, which could include emergency vehicles and delivery services,” Manager of Planning and Development Barb Hazelton said during the presentation.
Hazelton noted at least 14 of these unnamed roads, which are not part of the existing township and range road grid, were identified throughout the county. Applications to redesignate these roads will be brought before council individually for approval.
Road signs will be purchased and installed once these redesignations have been approved. Kneehill County will also work with Alberta Transportation for any signage required along primary highways in the area.
“This project won’t have any impact on the operating budget as road signs are already budgeted,” Hazelton noted.
These newly named roads will also be added to future editions of the Kneehill County map.
Division 6 Councillor Wade Christie questioned whether renaming these roads will impact the rural addressing system for some rural residents.
Hazelton noted there may be some potential impacts; in the case of the original ratepayer request, “there would be two parties” required to update their rural address signs.
She added the policy will help to “clean up” some “problematic” roads.
Going forward, developers will be asked to name any roads “added or left when divisions happen” during a development. To avoid further concerns, renaming of these roads will become part of the regular application process for Country Residential developments.
Division 7 Councillor Kenneth King motioned for council to approve the new naming of county roads; the motion was carried unanimously.