This Month with Mayor Ken Johnston: October 2022

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1. Mayor Johnston, I’d like to know your thoughts on why the cell service in the areas of Timberlands and Clearview is so poor. And why is it not being fixed? I emailed your office in August and didn’t get a reply for a month, which was from legal saying there is a non-disclosure agreement. In August, Councillor Lee introduced a notice of motion on this subject; has there been any movement on that, and what is The City doing to ensure that not only is this corrected for the areas mentioned, but that this isn’t a constant problem as Red Deer expands? – Trisha, Timberlands/Clearview

Thank you for this question. In September, Council brought forward a Notice of Motion to seek out information and advocate for better service for our residents. The Mayor’s office wrote to Red Deer’s telecommunications providers, citing concern about Alberta’s third largest city having such poor cell phone reception in several well-settled neighbourhoods. Steady, reliable reception and good connectivity is needed, for many reasons, but first and foremost, safety.

To be clear, the federal government regulates this industry, so Red Deer City Council will continue to speak up and advocate for solutions for our community. We were pleased to hear from Telus just recently that a new tower beside the firehall in Timberlands should be constructed by the end of 2022. Councillors were assured this would mean better reception for many Red Deerians before 2023. We also heard Telus is reviewing reception concerns raised in the Westlake area, and that their wireless teams are working on real estate options for two future mobility sites that would serve other areas of the city.

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New cell tower expected in northeast Red Deer by end of year

Councillor Lawrence Lee puts out call for better telecommunication services in Red Deer

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2. What can the City of Red Deer do to improve communication and project completion timelines for local residents during long term infrastructure replacement projects? – Stephen Merredew, West Park

Thank you for your question, Stephen. I know that there was a lot of underground work happening in the West Park area this summer, and that it wasn’t always easy to navigate and to get around in your neighbourhood. So I do appreciate where you are coming from, and appreciate yours, and everyone in the areas, patience as crews worked.

During long term projects, especially in residential areas, The City aims to provide construction updates through direct letters to residents usually delivered by the working contractor; The City’s website at www.reddeer.ca/constructionseason; and issuing public service announcements on our website and through local and social media. Localized signage is also used to alert visitors to the neighbourhood of the construction activities.

When planning large construction projects, crews do provide some contingency for delays from weather and material shipping; however, this contingency is an estimate and projects are at the mercy of mother nature and worldwide supply and demand so timelines often change. The City does update posted information and residents when this happens.

Speaking with administration, before any project moves forward, consideration is always given to balance the necessity of the work with the inconvenience to residents. In circumstances where major infrastructure requires upgrading, we know that the work must be done in advance of failure or the impact to residents would be much greater than the upgrade project itself. Replacing infrastructure before it fails, allows The City the ability to control the circumstances around service impacts, minimizing the impact to residents.

Absolutely, communication with area residents is key to ensuring everyone has the most up to date information. Our team is focused on keeping the public, stakeholders and impacted parties informed, and works to keep the website as up to date as possible with project details and timelines. And there can always be improvements in that area, and we will ensure your message is conveyed to the right departments to work on those improvements.

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3. With The City recently soliciting resident feedback for the River Bend Golf and Recreation Area Draft Master Plan, what is your vision for that area? What have been its benefits to the city since its establishment in 1982? Where and what do you think needs improvement, and why? – rdnewsNOW

The River Bend Golf & Recreation area is a true jewel of our city, and a vibrant asset for so many Red Deerians, and visitors. The proposed Master Plan for River Bend will be presented to City Council on November 21, and I look forward to seeing some of the visioning and ideas that we have gathered from our community.

Over the last number of months, with the help of a consultant, The City has involved the community through a variety of public engagement methods. During the course of the public engagement process, hundreds of Red Deerians voiced their opinions about the future of the River Bend area.

This is the beginning of a process to develop a 20-year master plan for the area. Since its creation in 1982, River Bend has grown and evolved to better serve the recreation needs of our changing community. The process of creating this master plan is to ensure the park is well positioned to continue meeting community needs and providing outstanding recreational opportunities. The master plan will include extensive research and analysis, input from a broad spectrum of community members, a 20-year vision and guiding principles, actionable strategies, and a recommended action plan that will guide future decisions.

City Council and I look forward to hearing more about this plan in November.

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City asks Red Deerians to “help shape the future of River Bend”

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4. With major events such as the CFR and Agri-Trade coming to Red Deer in November, and taking into consideration the economic impact they have on our community and region, not to mention others that take place throughout the calendar, what marketing measures does the City of Red Deer undertake outside of the city and central Alberta to help draw visitors here? – rdnewsNOW

The City and Tourism Red Deer are currently working together to develop a strategic business plan which, if approved by Council this fall during budget deliberations, will see Tourism Red Deer take the lead on bringing major events to our community and act as a single point of contact for event producers, funders, facilities and more to make event planning in Red Deer simpler. This would transition Tourism Red Deer into a new Destination Development Corporation (DDC), the first of its kind in Red Deer. The DDC would have three major functions, including tourism marketing, major events, and destination development, which would help build community-wide capacity to transform Red Deer into a premier major event destination.

As background, this project was developed in 2021, when Council approved the Major Event Strategy and Destination Development Framework to position our community as a premier tourism and event destination in Canada. The goal of the framework is to see Red Deer as a top major event destination by 2030. The framework outlined a single point of contact for major events and offers a vision to align destination development with major event attraction. Tourism Red Deer was identified as that single point of contact at that time.

You can follow the details of this project at https://www.reddeer.ca/city-government/plans-and-projects/ongoing-plans-and-projects/major-event-strategy/.

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City council approves $50,000 Canadian Finals Rodeo sponsorship

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EDITOR’S NOTE: The views expressed above are those of the Mayor and do not necessarily represent those of rdnewsNOW or Pattison Media. Column suggestions and letters to the editor can be sent to news@rdnewsNOW.com.

by Ken Johnston, Mayor of Red Deer

This Month with Mayor Ken Johnston: October 2022

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