Starland County is ready to show its new offices at its grand opening.
    The County has completed a major renovation of the facility and has slated its grand opening for Thursday, August 2. This is not the only event they are celebrating. The celebration  marks the 40th anniversary of the Big County Gas Co-op, which shares the facility; this coincides with the Year of the Cooperative. They are also marking 10 years of Starland operating an ATB agency.
    The renovations began early in 2011 to the administration office, which was of 1970’s vintage. The goal was to expand its space, increase its efficiency and to make the building more accessible.
    It has achieved its goals on all fronts. The building’s entrance is now at ground level, the council chamber is expanded and also set up as a hub in case of a disaster, with banks of data and telephone ports. The building easily houses many of its services including FCSS, agriculture services and bylaw enforcement.  The construction also planned for long-term growth.
    “The space was designed so that in the longer term some of these spaces could be converted to additional office space,” said Starland CAO Ross Rawlusyk. “When we were planning the building we worked with the staff to identify what the future staffing requirements might be 20 years down the road and that is what we designed the space for.”
    And while they have almost doubled its size, it has become more efficient.
    “One of our goals going in was that at the end of the day the expanded building would use less energy than the building did before,” said Rawlusyk. “We do know we have done that. We are a couple hundred dollars a month under what we were before.”
    “We definitely met our objective of not having a bigger footprint at the end of the day.”
    Part of achieving this efficiency is not only from upgrading insulation and fixtures, but also from the second largest building mount solar project in the province. The new office has highly efficient solar array that provide upwards of 15 kilowatts.
    The project was funding through the province’s Municipal Sustainability Initiative (MSI) and the federal Gas Tax Program. Rawlusyk said the County had very fortunate timing for the project, which helped the bottom line. The initial budget was for roughly $1.9 million, Reed Atwood Builders of Calgary came in with a bid of about $1.3 million.
    “We were able to keep the old part of the building too, so we were able to maximize what we had and add to it…and make it all new,” said Rawlusyk. “We tendered this right at low point of the economy, so the prices came in a lot lower than the architect estimated.”
    He said because of this the county was able to reallocate some of its MSI funding to other needs.
    The grand opening is on Thursday, August 2 with lunch served at the Morrin Community Hall and a short program at 2 p.m. Plaques will be unveiled to acknowledge the funding assistance provided by both levels of government. Guided tours of the facility will also be offered.

    The Village of Delia is giving the sidewalks on Main Street some much needed attention. Come this fall, the sidewalks on Main Street will be completely redone, minus cement.
    The new sidewalks will be made from blocks of recycled tires, similar to what is used on some playgrounds. It is hoped things will start within the next couple weeks and be finished in September.
    “We’ve got sidewalk blocks made out of recycled tires. We just ordered them, so we’re hoping to start by the middle of August,” said CAO Caroline Siverson.
    So far, Main Street is the only street slated to be redone.
    “All of our sidewalks need attention. They’re all the original sidewalks put in 50 to 60 years ago. Over the years they’ve deteriorated. It would be great to do the rest of Delia, but it would be quite expensive. This project alone is about $55,000. It’s cheaper than replacing them with cement,” said Siverson.
    In March, the Village applied for and received the Municipal Demonstration Grant from Alberta Recycling. The grant helps communities purchase products made from recycled tires.
    The new sidewalk material has a couple benefits over traditional cement aside from the lower cost. The sidewalks should be softer to walk on and are easier to work with when repairs are needed.
    “They’re soft to walk on, they have a little bit of give, unlike cement,” said Siverson. “If we have an issue with a water valve in front of a business, we don’t have to destroy the sidewalk. We can take these pieces out and then put them back later.”
    The project is part of the Village’s plans to get ready for its centennial celebration in 2014.
    “Council decided to do Main Street, because it's our centennial in two years. We wanted to revitalize Main Street and this is the first step,” said Siverson. “This is the street everyone drives down, so we want to make sure it looks good.”
    Siverson went on to explain a further step could include planting trees along Main Street.
    The project also shows Delia’s commitment to going green.
    “Our community really focuses on being green and recycling. When we do something, we try to think of what is best for the environment,” said Siverson. “It’s a good opportunity to showcase how the community is trying to be environmentally conscious.”
    Work on the new sidewalk is expected to begin by mid August and should be completed by the end of September.