After receiving numerous complaints from residents, the Town of Drumheller will be working to reduce the number of coyotes that are running wild through parts of Drumheller.
    Community Bylaw Enforcement will be trapping and relocating coyotes for the foreseeable future.
    Greg Peters, supervisor for Community Bylaw Enforcement, has received complaints of the animals coming into their yards. However, it is difficult to ascertain if the local coyote population is increasing.
    “There are a lot of coyotes and people have been noticing them. It’s been that way for several years,” said Peters. “People have been concerned and have reported seeing a lot of coyotes.”
    Normally, Fish and Wildlife would handle the wild animals, but since the local officer retired, Community Bylaw Enforcement has been given a permit and tasked with trapping and relocating the coyotes.
    “It came to our attention that it is an issue and we contacted Fish and Wildlife. They’re tied up and there’s no [Fish and Wildlife] officer posted in Drumheller right now. There’s a fellow out of Strathmore, but he’s busy with hunting season. We were issued a permit from the province to trap coyotes to get them to manageable numbers and see if there is a bump in their numbers,” said Peters.
    Peters has experience dealing with wild animals.
    “I was an RCMP officer and I spent some time in the north. During my time there, I helped Fish and Wildlife with bears, wolf trapping, and others,” said Peters. “It’s not a normal function for us, we’re attempting to assist Fish and Wildlife and report everything we do to them.”
    Residents are asked to be on  the lookout for coyotes within town limits. Areas they have already been spotted include Midland, North Drumheller, and Riverside.
    Signs that a coyote has been in the area include footprints, feces, and raided garbage.
    Residents are encouraged to contact Community Bylaw Enforcement should they suspect coyotes are frequenting the area. Pet owners should also supervise when their animals are outside.
    “People can call bylaw enforcement if they have a concern, report coyotes, or if they want to have a trap on their property,” said Peters. “If someone notices any traffic or large numbers of coyotes let us know.”
    Community Bylaw Enforcement can be reached at 403-823-1363.

    Drumheller Town Council has their sights on what they would like to accomplish in the coming year.
    At their recent Strategic Business Plan Meeting, Council chose their top four priorities; developing a revised fundraising strategy for the Badlands Community Facility (BCF), establishing a community foundation, conducting an organizational service capacity review, and finalizing the design for phase 2 of the BCF.
    Should there be time, Council also highlighted beginning the 2014 budget process and conducting an efficiency review of the Valley Bus Society.
    Developing a new fundraising strategy was considered the top priority. It is hoped the details can be pounded out in a meeting between the Town of Drumheller and fundraising cabinet later this month.
    “They’ll be having another meeting and talking about next steps,” said Mayor Terry Yemen.
    Council also hopes to create a community foundation by next summer. Such a group would help communicate between the community and BCF and provide fundraising support for future Town projects.
    “It’ll be an opportunity and network where community issues and concerns can go right to the BCF. They can work with the administration of the facility to find out what works and what could be improved. There will be a fundraising component too,” said Yemen.
    It is also hoped the Town will be able to review itself to identify areas and departments that could be made more efficient.
    “We’ll look at the departments in the Town. Maybe one department is heavy, so we’ll break up some of the responsibility. We might take the load of a director and made a head of a certain area instead,” said Yemen.
    The last priority is to have a design ready for the second phase of the BCF.
    “We’re going to work towards getting it done, but I think we would be remiss if we  got too far down the road before we took care of our present facility,” said Yemen. “We want to be shovel ready for phase 2. Grants will be announced and its first come first serve. You want to be ready with a design when grants come out.”
    The second phase will include a second ice surface for Drumheller and a new curling rink.
    Should the opportunity arise, Council hopes to begin work on the 2014 budget, and conduct a review of the Valley Bus Society to ascertain if there are ways to increase efficiency and expand service.
    “We’ll be going into a new budget cycle so we’ll be looking at that,” said Yemen. “The Valley Bus Society has moved up on our priorities quite a bit. It’s an efficiency review, so we’re trying to see what they could do different. We’d also like to explore the possibility of expanding it and doing some fixed routes, which could help with the sustainability of the Valley Bus.”
    The fixed routes could be utilized by all residents of Drumheller, but the emphasis will always remain with the original mandate of providing seniors and persons with limited mobility transportation.
    It is hoped the first goal, developing a revised BCF fundraising strategy, will be addressed and a report ready for Council by the end of December.