By Sheldon Spackman

Yellowhead Conservative candidate pushes for improved internet and cellular coverage

Sep 19, 2018 | 1:40 PM

One of five people seeking the Conservative nomination in Alberta’s Yellowhead riding for next year’s federal election has released a detailed plan outlining her intentions to advocate for improved internet access and cellular coverage in the region.

Parkland County resident Kathy Rondeau, a self-described learning and development analyst, says in a press release issued Wednesday that her travels throughout the riding have revealed just how widespread the issue of poor internet and cell coverage is throughout the region.

“There are just too many things folks in the city take for granted that we struggle with here because of bad coverage,” states Rondeau. “Whether it is business opportunities, productivity, education, safety, entertainment, social interaction or others.  We need this addressed immediately to keep our young people here and our communities thriving.”

Rondeau’s plan lists four main strategies for improving the digital infrastructure and access in rural Alberta. They include strong collaboration between the different levels of government and industry and eliminating barriers to smaller providers who want to provide services but cannot access infrastructure or spectrum.

The other strategies include ensuring any linear infrastructure like roads or sewers incorporates telecommunications lines whenever feasible to reduce costs; and finally to get additional federal funding for rural Alberta’s digital infrastructure to recognize how much Alberta contributes to Canada’s economy and to enable the province to continue to be the nation’s economic engine.

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“Most of these proposals can help all rural communities in Canada and don’t have much of a price tag, if any,” Rondeau explains. However, after pointing out that Albertans contribute roughly $25 billion more to Ottawa than is returned in transfers and spending, she added, “But the fact is, west-central Alberta contributes so much to Canada’s economy and to Federal coffers that our poor digital access is absolutely unacceptable. We should also be getting some of our federal tax dollars back in direct digital infrastructure investment from Ottawa so our communities can continue to fuel prosperity in Canada.”

The other four candidates running for the Conservative nomination in Yellowhead include Robert Duiker, Kelly Jensen, Glenn McLean and Gerald Soroka.

Officials with the Yellowhead Conservative Association have released dates, times and locations for a pair of candidate nomination forums slated for next month:

– Tuesday, October 2 at 7:00 p.m. at the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 269 in Drayton Valley

– Thursday, October 4 at 7:00 p.m. at the Red Brick Arts Centre in Edson.

A series of nomination votes are also scheduled to take place throughout the riding in October following the candidate forums.

They include Thursday, October 11 from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the Grande Cache Inn & Suites in Grande Cache, Thursday, October 11 from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 249 in Hinton and Friday, October 12 from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 8 in Rocky Mountain House.

Additional nomination votes will take place Friday, October 12 from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 269 in Drayton Valley, Saturday, October 13 from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at the Jubilee Hall in Wabamun and Saturday, October 13 from 4:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at the Galloway Station Museum in Edson.