The number of total police events reported in both the city and rural Grande Prairie areas saw a bump in November compared to the same month in 2022.

According to the latest numbers from the Grande Prairie RCMP, a total of 2,612 police events were reported in the City of Grande Prairie in November up from the 2,305 incidents reported last November. In rural Grande Prairie 561 police events were reported last month, 60 more than were reported in 2022.

In the City of Grande Prairie, there was a bump in the number of Theft from Motor Vehicle and Theft of Motor Vehicle incidents reported in November. The number of Theft from Motor Vehicle’s saw an uptick from 27 incidents to 28 incidents, while the number of Theft of Motor Vehicles went from 19 incidents in November 2022 to 22 incidents in November 2023. The number of Break-and-enter and Possession of Stolen Property incidents saw a year-over-year decline, with 22 Break-and-enter incidents reported down from 24 in 2022 and 19 Possession of Stolen Property Incidents down from 21 reported in 2022.

In rural Grande Prairie, there was an increase in the number of Theft of Motor Vehicle incidents, going from four in 2022 to 12 in 2023, while the number of Break-and-enter incidents stayed steady at seven in 2022 and 2023. The number of Theft from Motor Vehicle and Possession of Stolen Property incidents both saw a year-over-year decline in 2023, with three Theft from Motor Vehicle incidents in November 2023 half the number reported the same month the previous year and seven Possession of Stolen Property incidents reported in November down from the 11 reported the same month in 2022.

Grande Prairie RCMP officers are hoping to cram their cruisers with donations to support Grande Prairie Salvation Army Community and Family Services.

Mounties will be in the community on Saturday and Sunday for their Cram a Cruiser event, collecting grocery and essential donations for the local organization. Staff Sergeant Gord Hughes says supporting the community with these kind of initiatives is important to the members and staff at the local detachment.

“We appreciate being able to team up with the public, and, in this case, the Grande Prairie Salvation Army Community and Family Services, in order to help persons in need.”

Items on the Cram a Cruiser wish list include baby food, formula and essentials, baking supplies, canned food items, condiments, oils and spices. Also on the list are boxed meals like macaroni and cheese and hygiene products such as body wash, deodorant, toothbrushes and toilet paper.

Public Information Officer Corporal Mathew Howell says Cram a Cruiser events have become a popular for detachments to hold across the province, and it is because it is a fun and positive initiative that helps support those in the community who may have struggled in 2023.

“From everyone I have spoken to, and people I work with, we become a police officer because we want to help and be there for the people in our community. Events like this make it so that we can help the community, we can be there for the people that we police for.”

On Saturday, December 16th members of the RCMP will be at FreshCo from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and on Sunday, December 17th they will be at Save-On-Foods from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Numerous topics related to nature sites in the Grande Prairie region were discussed during the County of Grande Prairie Committee of the Whole meeting.

During the December 12th meeting, provincial representatives presented a draft plan for the Red Willow Falls Designated Trail Area to enhance the recreational experience, improve parking, and ensure minimal environmental impacts for the area. As a result, the committee directed administration to continue working with the province to explore the option of the County becoming a trail manager for the protected area; however, the implementation date is entirely dependent on provincial funding.

Additionally, the committee received an update on the Government of Alberta’s consultation process with residents to convert the Kleskun Hill Natural Area into a provincial recreation area, resulting in the committee’s recommendation that council provide a letter of support to the Provincial Parks Division to designate the area surrounding the Kleskun Hills as a provincial park.

A school in the Peace Wapiti School Division is asking families to keep their students home on Thursday if possible.

According to a letter the Whispering Ridge Community School shared with families the request is due to an “overwhelming level of staff absences” and the inability to fill these spaces with on-call staff.

“WRCS along with PWSD Central Office is requesting any parents who are able to keep their children from attending school tomorrow, December 14th, to please do so,” reads the letter from the K to 8 school. “For those parents unable to keep their children at home, please know the school will provide reasonable and appropriate supervision for the school day.”

The school is reportedly on Outbreak Status from Alberta Health Services because of the high volume of student absences connected to respiratory and gastrointestinal illness. According to school administration as of Monday, December 11th, additional cleaning measures have been implemented to stop the spread of illness.

Along with the request to keep students home, the school has cancelled swimming lessons on Thursday, December 14th for grade four and five students and postponed the upcoming Family Movie Night.

The Grande Prairie Salvation Army’s annual Kettle Campaign is entering its last weeks before the jingle bells are hung up and Captain Peter Kim says the biggest need besides donations is volunteers as turnout has been smaller than anticipated.

“We’re looking for more volunteers, as time goes on, we’re looking for new volunteers or people looking to share that Christmas spirit, as well as raising funds, and helping families in need in our community.

Kim says volunteering is easy, as shifts are two hours long, and the work is simple yet rewarding.

“If you brought in say $100 or so, you could think of that two-hour shift as feeding a family of five.”

Currently, the Grande Prairie Salvation Army serves around one in five residents, or more than 12,000 people in need during the holidays. As a result, the army set a goal ahead of the Kettle Campaign to raise $650,000, and Kim says funding is around halfway there.

“We are at $328,000 of the $650,000, just over halfway there, but we still have two weeks left in the year.”

He adds the trend is typical for this time of year and donations tend to start hot at the beginning of the campaign, before dropping into a lull and picking up once again as Christmas Day gets closer.

“If people still want to donate they can mail in their donation, [but] that’s what we’re seeing a drop in, mail-in donations, so we’re hoping people will do that,” Kim says. “Those who are able to give, give very generously, and usually do so in the last two weeks of the year.”

A noticeable number of young volunteers have been ringing the bells this year, and Captain Kim says this has been a welcome surprise as some lifelong volunteers have started to age out of their role with the campaign.

“This year we’ve seen a lot of new volunteers joining our campaign and we’re grateful for that,” he says. “A lot of our seniors aren’t able to make it out so we’re grateful to see the new generation stepping up to help out.”

The campaign ends on December 23rd; however, donations are accepted year-round in-person, online, or by mailing a cheque. Those interested in signing up for a kettle shift are encouraged to contact the Salvation Army at (780)-296-3946.

The City of Grande Prairie has opened up nominations for the city’s Women of Influence Awards 2024.

According to the city, the awards are observed annually and recognize local women who have made an impact by promoting equality, providing opportunities for women, and breaking barriers in their respective fields.

Mayor Jackie Clayton says the awards are significant as they support council’s commitment to improve inclusivity and innovation in the city.

“These awards are an inspirational showcase of the leaders in our community who are moving the needle in their industries and for gender equality.”

Three award categories are open for nomination: Young Woman of Influence for those under 30 years old, Trailblazing Woman of Influence for women 30 to 49 years old, and Distinguished Woman of Influence for those 50 and older. Nomination packages are available on the city’s website and must be submitted by Monday, February 5th, 2024.

The award ceremony is scheduled to take place on Friday, March 8th at 11:00 a.m. at the Bowes in Bonnetts Energy Centre.

The City of Grande Prairie is urging residents to practice safe skating this winter by avoiding storm ponds, no matter how thick the ice might look.

According to the city, storm ponds pose significant safety risks, and participating in recreational activities on them is strongly discouraged.

The city says storm ponds are not designed or maintained for recreational activities such as skating, and the ice might be inconsistent, posing the risk of falling through thin ice. Additionally, unpredictable conditions such as stormwater runoff and rapidly fluctuating water levels can contribute to thin ice risks and present a hazard to residents.

Instead of skating on thin ice this winter, Transportation Director Wade Nellis says residents should enjoy winter activities in designated areas such as municipal ice rinks, where conditions are managed and consistently monitored throughout the season.

Members of the Grande Prairie Fire Service presented in the last city council meeting of the year after being told they would be subject to staffing cuts following council’s 2024 budget deliberations.

Grande Prairie Firefighters Association President Ian MacDonald says the department asked council for four additional staff members during last year’s 2023 budget deliberations, which was amended to two, with “a commitment to review the data in 2023” to discuss additional staffing needs.

Citing recent fire service expansions in cities like Medicine Hat, MacDonald says the decision to cut staffing came as a “shock for all members” of the Grande Prairie Fire Service.

“While other municipalities of similar size with half the call volume for service like Medicine Hat have expanded, and Airdrie is set to add another station and 24 members starting in 2024/25, we decide to reduce positions,” MacDonald says. “Every position matters, period.”

Mayor Jackie Clayton says she is “unable to discuss specific positions within the fire organization” as labour is a topic discussed in-camera; however, she has confirmed “there were decisions made at council that did have impacts in departments.”

“The budget was set at 6.08 [per cent] and in order to get to a 3.28 [per cent], there were some difficult decisions made, some of those impacted services, and some had other impacts as well.”

The mayor adds that fire, policing, and roads are the city’s top three expenses during budget talks. She says despite any cuts, the city remains committed to providing adequate emergency services for residents.

“We’re very collaborative of making sure that our safety programs whether it’s policing or fire, are well served so our community feels safe,” she says. “With that, elected officials on a regular basis make sure the appropriate amount of money is being spent.”

Additionally, Clayton says it is “realistic” to discuss staffing levels once again when budget talks return next year. Despite frustrations from the Grande Prairie Fire Service, Clayton says she “looks forward to continuing” the city’s relationship with the fire service in the future.

A local bagel shop is encouraging Grande Prairie residents who might be short on sugar to purchase cookies for a cause this holiday season.

Papa’s Bagels N’ Stuff has partnered with the United Way to support local charities heading into the holidays. Between December 1st and 23rd, Papa’s has promised to donate $0.25 for each cookie sold, and $2 for each box of six.

Papa’s owner Kelton Jempson says the partnership made sense because cookies are such a hot seller this time of year.

“United Way reached out to us and said they have a really great promotion going on here where they would be able to partner up with them on social media and we could donate to a good cause,” he says. “We thought why don’t we jump on this, we know cookies are a pretty good seller during the holidays so we thought we could probably help out pretty well with that.”

Jempson adds that as cookies continue selling, he plans on introducing new flavours in the weeks leading up to Christmas to keep things fresh for returning customers.

“The cookies seem to be moving, we’re going to launch a couple new flavours next week as well to see if we can get some people right before Christmas.”

Jempson says this year’s goal is to raise $250 for the United Way. As of December 12th, $110 has been raised.

One life was lost to an accidental fatal drug poisoning in Grande Prairie in September, down from the four fatal drug poisonings reported in the same month last year.

According to the Alberta Substance Use Surveillance System, the incident was connected to non-pharmaceutical opioids.

From January to September of this year, there have been 25 accidental drug poisoning fatalities reported in Grande Prairie. Across the province, there were 136 fatal drug poisoning incidents reported in September.

Construction for the replacement of the Beaverlodge Municipal Hospital is slated to start next spring.

The Government of Alberta confirmed project designs for the Mountview Health Complex, which the Town of Beaverlodge has partnered with Landrex Inc. to build, should begin soon. The 9,000-square-metre facility will be built on 20 acres of land donated to the town by the McFarlane family a decade ago.

According to the province, last month, AHS signed a lease agreement for once the project is complete, a year after initially announcing their plans to move into the replacement for the Beaverlodge Hospital. When construction is done, AHS will operate space within the facility.

Grande Prairie-Wapiti MLA Ron Wiebe says the new project will help provide Beaverlodge residents and those who live in the region area with access to quality care.

“Our region’s health providers need a facility that meets the latest standards and enables them to provide that quality care. This new facility will offer those amenities.”

Last October, Alberta Health Services signed a letter of intent to pursue becoming the anchor tenant in the Mountview Health Complex. At the time, Mayor of Beaverlodge Gary Rycroft said AHS coming on as a tenant was a huge step for the project.

“We look forward to welcoming more businesses and services into Beaverlodge. We’re thankful for community members’ input and patience as we work to bring Doris McFarlane’s vision to reality,” Rycroft said.

When the town revamped the call for the new facility in 2020, the proposed complex would operate 24 hours a day, with 12 inpatient care beds, an emergency department, a lab, and diagnostics and therapy departments.

At the beginning of 2021, the town issued a request for proposals for the community health facility, and in October of that year, the town signed a letter of intent with Landrex Inc. According to the province, the Mountview Health Complex is expected to open in 2028.

A new bylaw change is hitting Grande Prairie parks to regulate electric scooters and bikes after a “number” of calls reporting dangerous riding habits among trail users.

The bylaw allows and regulates the use of “wheeled conveyances,” including e-bikes, e-scooters, and other mobility aides, in parklands throughout the city.

City councillor Mike O’Connor describes the change as “putting some teeth” in the bylaw, giving enforcement services additional options they might not otherwise have.

“I’ve received a number of calls from people almost getting run over, people passing on both sides, not announcing when they’re coming,” he says. “I think it’s important that people stay to the right but follow the rules and now we have the tools to be able to monitor that and be able to respond in an appropriate manner.”

O’Connor says the decision is a prudent one as the use of electric scooters and bikes becomes increasingly popular. He says the bylaw will serve as an indication of any additional concerns residents might have while using the trails.

“I think it’s important that we take a good look at what’s happening on our trails with the advent of e-scooters and e-bikes.”

“There is no speed limit just because we want to be able to monitor and see if people call in, to 3-1-1, then we’re able to determine if we need to put a focus on a different area.”

Alberta Municipalities is currently advocating for amendments to the Traffic Safety Act to regulate e-scooters, and the city says while they could wait for the outcome of these efforts, not doing so is beneficial as Grande Prairie does not currently have any rules in place to regulate the use of e-scooters.

A 29-year-old Grande Prairie man is facing first-degree murder charges in connection to a body found near Westside Park earlier this month.

The body was discovered on December 4th, and was initially deemed as a suspicious death. However, police say, the victim, identified as 34-year-old Brian Buchaski, was deemed to be the victim of a homicide.

29-year-old Nathan Landry has been remanded in custody following his arrest and will next appear in court on January 8th, 2024.

Despite charges being laid, Mounties say the investigation remains ongoing. Anyone with information is urged to contact the Grande Prairie RCMP detachment or Crime Stoppers if they wish to remain anonymous.

Update: The temporary service disruption at the Fairview Health Complex Emergency Department will end 12 hours earlier than planned. According to Alberta Health Services, physician coverage was found for the department starting at 7 p.m. Tuesday, December 12th. 

The Fairview Health Complex Emergency Department will not have a physician on-site for 24 hours starting Tuesday morning. According to Alberta Health Services, the disruption will start at 7 a.m. on Tuesday, December 12th and is expected to end at 7 a.m. Wednesday, December 13th.

However, the provincial health authority will cancel the disruption if sufficient coverage is found.

Nursing staff will remain on-site to provide triage and assessments. EMS calls will be re-routed to surrounding facilities, including the Grande Prairie Regional Hospital.

AHS also reminds residents they can contact 8-1-1 anytime about non-emergency health questions.

The Grande Prairie RCMP is asking for the public’s help locating a missing 43-year-old man.

Arthur Patelas is described as a male with a medium complexion, 5 feet 5 inches tall, 158 pounds, with black hair, brown eyes, and a tattoo of the word “Dakota” on his back shoulder.

Police say Patelas was last seen in Grande Prairie on November 11, 2023, and are worried for his well-being and would like to speak with him.

Anyone with information regarding the whereabouts of Patelas is asked to contact the Grande Prairie RCMP Detachment at 780-830-5701, or Crime Stoppers.

Residents are advised that the West Grande Prairie Regional Landfill operations will change as of Tuesday, December 12th.

According to the county, the facility will continue accepting the same recycling and waste items from residents; however, on December 12th, users will be required to unload waste into the provided bins at the facility for transfer to the Clairmont Centre for Recycling and Waste Management. Commercial clients will need to take their waste to the Clairmont facility themselves.

The county adds that there will be no impact on residential curbside collection, and the changes result from an examination that revealed a “lower-than-expected” cell capacity at the West Grande Prairie Regional Landfill.

The county says further study is required to assess the need, feasibility, and costs of additional cell space for waste management.

The Grande Prairie branch of the Canadian Mental Health Association is seeking donations for a special Christmas dinner for Willow Place residents.

According to Willow Place Property Manager Carol Carter, the CMHA puts on holiday dinners throughout the year. She says residents depend on communal dinners around the holidays as many are separated from their families.

“Because we know that they aren’t really connected with their families and stuff like that, they’re alone, so we always try to give them a home-cooked meal once in a while,” she says. “We have some turkey dinner with all the fixings to remind them of back in the day. We have a common area for them, and the Christmas tree is up.”

Carter adds that as food prices continue to rise, donations have become increasingly important for Willow Place, and donations of all kinds are welcome.

“After COVID, prices and stuff like that, it started to get harder and harder in the last couple years to find turkeys, so us being non-profit, we still have to keep looking,” she says. “It doesn’t have to be turkeys; it can be dessert or cash so we can buy things like dessert for that day.”

Additionally, Carter says 57 residents and numerous others from various disability programs in the city will attend the dinner. She says holiday dinners serve as an important reminder of good memories for residents who might have negative associations with the holiday season and are also important to their mental health.

“Through the season, most of these individuals do have something that maybe impacted them back in the day, so it can bring back memories and sharing stories of the happier times with family and friends that maybe they can’t make that connection anymore with them.”

Interested individuals are encouraged to donate in person at Willow Place or by calling (780)-814-2349 to coordinate contributions.

Charges are pending for an alleged break-and-enter over the weekend.

According to the Grande Prairie RCMP, at around 2:54 a.m. on Sunday, December 10th, officers, and a member of the RCMP Police Dog Service responded to the Grande Prairie Farmers Market where the incident reportedly occurred.

Public Information Officer Corporal Mathew Howell says the suspect was taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, adding the man was released shortly after.

The emergency department at the Beaverlodge Municipal Hospital will be without a doctor as of 5 p.m. Monday, December 11th until 8 a.m. Tuesday, December 12th.

Alberta Health Services says while no physician will be on site, nursing staff will still be on hand to provide triage, assessments and referrals to other facilities, including the Grande Prairie Regional Hospital.

Those with non-emergency medical needs or questions are urged to call Healthlink at 811.

As the Alberta Winter Games get closer, Grande Prairie continues to brace for impact as the city gets ready to welcome more than 2,000 athletes and coaches in February.

According to Games Manager Lisa Kerkhof, around 1,900 athletes are set to compete this year. She adds that several athletes will enjoy a home-team advantage, as the event boasts around 200 competitors who call the Peace Country home.

“Not every sport has had its selection camps yet so that’s coming but yes Peace Country we’re definitely going to be well represented.”

Kerkhof says the games coming to the city is significant as it is the first major sporting event Grande Prairie has hosted in nearly six years. She says the games benefit athletes, coaches, spectators, and the city alike.

“It’s so exciting for those athletes to be able to showcase their talent on a provincial scale, to make connections outside of just Grande Prairie with the rest of Alberta.”

“It’s a great economic driver for the community,” she says. “Tourism is a huge driver, we’ve got about 3000 hotel rooms in the city and we expect to sell those out within the city as well as the county, [and] we’ll have things like restaurants and grocery stores seeing that impact with people spending money in their establishments.”

Additionally, Kerkhof says the games present a unique volunteering opportunity for community members. She says the games need “around 1500” to run efficiently, and around 600 people have committed so far.

“For the community it’s just a great way for us to connect together from a volunteering perspective, just really coming together to make something of this magnitude happen in the community.”

According to officials, the event is set to feature 2,400 athletes and coaches, 250 technical officials, 200 “invited guests,” and between three and four thousand spectators.