The County is offering extended service hours this June to give ratepayers more convenience in paying their property taxes by the last business day of the month.

The extended hours for the County Administration Building are from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on from June 17th to the 21st and again on the 24th, and 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. from June 26th to the 28th.

Property tax and assessment notices were mailed to roughly 20,000 property owners in the county during the month of May, and payments can be made online by credit card on the county’s website, through banking institutions, by cheque mailed to the County Administration Building, or in-person at the Admin Building.

Property owners who recently transferred or purchased property in the county and have not received a tax notice are asked to contact the County Tax Office at (780)-513-3968 as soon as possible to avoid potential penalties and hassle.

Property tax payments are due on June 28th and the county says late payments are subject to penalties.

Residents are invited to join in the celebration of Pollinator Week from June 17th to June 23rd around the city.

To mark the occasion, the city has organized a series of various activities and events to engage the community while highlighting the importance of pollinators. Additionally, residents who wish to participate in their own way are encouraged to plant pollinator-friendly gardens, reduce pesticide use, and spread awareness among their peers.

Grande Prairie Mayor Jackie Clayton describes Pollinator Week as an opportunity to educate the community about the essential role pollinators like bees and butterflies play in Grande Prairie’s ecosystem.

“As a dedicated Bee City, these local initiatives and opportunities for community involvement aim to enhance the health and diversity of our ecosystem creating a strong quality of life for all our residents,” she says.

Numerous activities are scheduled throughout the week kicking off on June 19th with the first GP Grows Orchard Tour event at Mike Fedyna Park from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.

Additionally, children can participate in a rock painting activity to paint rocks to resemble their favourite pollinators and submit photos of their work for a chance to win a prize pack.

Teens and adults are encouraged to join the “Pedal for Pollinators” photo challenge by taking photos of pollinators they encounter while biking on the city’s trail system, and submissions for this challenge can also be entered for a chance to win a prize pack.

Photos can be submitted on the city’s website.

More awards are coming out of the Grande Prairie Public School Division as the school year winds down.

The most recent award winner is Kairoh Winiandy, a Grade 6 student from Hillside Community School who received a distinguished 2024 Lieutenant Governor of Alberta Student Award.

The prestigious award aims to celebrate “exceptional” students from around the province who have shown significant growth in skills to better themselves, both personally and academically through determination, initiative, and independence.

Winiandy is described as a leader in his school through his kindness, empathy, and compassion with his fellow students and his involvement in team sports. The young man says he feels “very honoured” to have received the award.

“It makes me feel respected and proud of the great things I am doing.”

Winiandy received the award on June 10th during a ceremony at the Government House in Edmonton alongside nine students in Grade 6, Grade 9, and Grade 11 from across Alberta.

A local Grande Prairie Public School Division teacher has been awarded the “prestigious” 2024 Prime Minister’s Certificate of Teaching Excellence.

Laura Noel, a teacher from Parkside Montessori School received the award in recognition of her “exceptional ability” to inspire and empower young learners through her use of creative and empathetic teaching methods.

Noel is described as a dedicated and innovative teacher known for her multi-sensory learning opportunities that encourage her students to utilize creative thinking in their studies.

The teacher is credited with starting numerous initiatives in and around her school such as the “grand-buddies” program with a local seniors home and the “kindness ninjas” project that fosters a sense of community and empathy in her students.

This year is special as well, as the 30th anniversary of the Prime Minister’s Awards which since their creation in 1994, have honoured more than 2,200 outstanding Canadian educators from across the country.

Significant financial moves came out of the County of Grande Prairie Council’s Committee meetings on June 11th.

During the meeting, council decided to award more than $210K in operating assistance grants to 59 local organizations and groups such as volunteer groups, non-profits, municipalities, schools, and sports clubs that provide services to county residents.

The most significant grants were allocated to organizations in the municipalities of Hythe-Demitt-Valhalla which received $29,370, Clairmont-Bezanson which received $33,500, Grande Prairie and area which received $46,000, and others.

Additionally, the County awarded a total of $41,920 in grant funding to numerous cemeteries in the area for improvement of the grounds. Among them, the Bethel Church, Halcourt, Hythe, Riverview, St. Andrew, St. Johns Lutheran Church, and Webster cemeteries all received $5,000 in funding.

The County also approved more than $40,000 for the replacement of the existing ventless fryer with a vented one in the Over-Time Lounge at the Crosslink County Sportsplex.

Following a traffic collision that occurred in a construction zone at the end of May, the RCMP is advising residents to stay aware of the risks associated with road construction throughout the warm season.

RCMP Media Relations officer Corporal Mathew Howell says the first step commuters should take is a simple one- planning ahead. By planning ahead by 15 to 20 minutes, Howell says drivers simply will not feel the need to rush to their destination, leading to safer roads for everyone.

For those who find themselves in a jam on their way to work when they face an unexpected construction delay, Howell says arriving late is better than not arriving at all.

“We say it a lot but slow down, those few extra minutes it might take you to go through a construction zone or to take a detour, yes you might be late, but at least you’re arriving,” he says. “One way or the other, there are more chances that by speeding in these areas, you could cause a collision that could make you late that could unfortunately maybe even send you or someone else to the hospital, all for trying to save a few minutes.”

When it comes to the safety of construction workers on the road, Howell says respecting signage is key to protecting the lives of workers in dangerous situations. Signage and advisories are required for construction projects in and around the city, and drivers are urged to remain cautious, especially when workers are present.

“Often they’re not in a vehicle, they don’t have any other protection apart from a set of cones or a barrier which will not provide them enough protection when it comes to a collision happening,” Howell says. “Everyone needs to get together and protect those on the road, everyone’s responsible for their own driving.”

Howell spoke on the incident that occurred at the end of last month, saying lessons can be learned by every driver as construction season continues throughout the region.

“We had an incident weeks ago where unfortunately someone was driving at a high rate of speed trying to avoid traffic and ended up in the lane under construction and hit a roller,” he says. “Essentially, the roller was fine, the truck not so much, and the reality of the situation is there’s a lot of construction equipment in these zones so if you’re going fast and trying to avoid an obstacle, you might hit something that could end your life, your passenger’s life, or cause damage to yourself and other people.”

Ultimately, Howell says collisions, even minor ones, will result in either late arrival, hospitalization, or in the worst-case scenario, the end of a life, and remaining cautious in construction zones could make the difference.

The Grande Prairie Police Service and Grande Prairie Enforcement Services have announced the launch of a new Community Engagement Team in an effort to better address “social disorder” impacting business owners and residents around the city.

According to the GPPS, the creation of the engagement team comes after an “extensive analysis” of the work being done by the former Grande Prairie Public Security Unit in problem areas around GP.

The new team launched on May 1st and the GPPS says will primarily focus on the city’s downtown core where a higher concentration of social disorder has been observed. Additionally, the team will operate in other problem areas of the city such as the city’s park system.

GPPS Chief Dwayne Lakusta, who has spoken extensively regarding his plan for a “tiered policing model,” says the establishment of the CET is another step in creating a “more integrated response” in his police service to better serve Grande Prairie residents.

“The Community Engagement Team will mean increased visibility and patrols in the parts of our city that need it the most,” he says. “Every resident and business owner deserves to feel safe.”

According to the GPPS, the team of Enforcement Services officers will be supported by the city police service when sworn police officers assist the Peace officers with “greater enforcement powers,” granting CET authorities under the Peace Officer Act of Alberta, and the Criminal Code of Canada.

It was a momentous occasion for the United Way Alberta Northwest as the organization celebrated 50 years of operation in the Peace Country and beyond.

June 11th saw a fun-filled day for the United Way, kicking off with the inaugural Breakfast Blitz and finishing with a ribbon-cutting ceremony and dinner at Centre 2000 in Grande Prairie, which recently appointed Executive Director Ken Loudon describes as a significant landmark for both his organization and the region’s residents.

“I think United Way is making a mark on the community, getting our message out that we’re vibrant and alive and well, and we’re here to build the community in an uplifting and positive way,” he says. “It was phenomenally receptive and the community stepped up as Grande Prairie does.”

The humble Loudon credits those before him with making such a milestone possible, saying he sees the 50th anniversary as a confidence booster for him in his new role.

“1974 seems a very long time ago and yet the number of people that have stepped up to keep this organization and build it to where it is today, I think we are standing on the shoulders of giants,” he says. “Being part of this organization, and knowing that I just stepped in at this monumental moment, it gives reassurances and comfort and strength, and buttresses up the platform for us to move forward.”

Both Loudon and his Board Chair Amber McGuinness spoke on what the anniversary means for the future of the United Way in Northwestern Alberta, saying they are both excited to continue fostering community connection with local organizations through events like the Breakfast Blitz becoming an annual affair.

“Our Fall Fair and Heli-drop which started last year, was a huge success and really just brought the community together, worked with other charities and got us really excited to keep doing it in the future,” McGuinness says.

“I’m looking forward to what’s in front, one of our biggest focuses is elevating our capacity and expanding our capacity to support the local non-profit organizations within our community that don’t have charity status,” Loudon adds. “When we build them, we build ourselves.”

Both the Breakfast Blitz and ribbon-cutting ceremony were well-attended by local leaders and city officials who described the day as significant for everyone involved.

Northwestern Polytechnic has announced two new diplomas through the School of Applied Science and Technology as the school continues its efforts to localize education in Grande Prairie.

During the Fall 2024 semester, students will be able to pursue diplomas in University Arts or University Biological Sciences at the Grande Prairie campus.

NWP Provost and Vice-President Academic Dr. Terry Kowalchuk says the choice to offer the two programs comes from a place of localizing education, and providing flexibility for students who wish to complete their education in GP.

“Students can now choose to complete a two-year diploma locally, or carry-on through NWP’s existing collaborative University Transfer program as they work towards an undergraduate degree with one of our partner post-secondaries,” he says.

Due to the change, students will now have the option to receive a credential without leaving the region, removing any barriers that students have previously faced in their education.

Additionally, NWP is the only post-secondary institution in the region offering University Arts and Biological Sciences programs in this way, which the school says will serve to benefit local learners on their journey to work in the Peace Country.

Registration opened up on June 11th for both programs, and interested individuals can visit NWP’s website for additional registration information.

The City of Grande Prairie has announced the live entertainment lineup for this year’s Canada Day celebrations.

The feature act is the award-winning Celtic rock group- the Derina Harvey Band. The band boasts an impressive set of accolades and received a 2024 East Coast Music Award in the Fan’s Choice Entertainer of the Year category.

Grande Prairie Mayor Clayton is “excited” to feature a number of acts during this years festivities, highlighting the live entertainment from around the country and the region to celebrate Canada’s birthday in GP.

“Residents and visitors alike are encouraged to come down and enjoy the free festivities taking place in the core of our city,” she says.

The Derina Harvey Band, The Northbloods, and Mandee Rae will be performing at the Muskoseepi Park amphitheater at 3:30 p.m. and beer gardens will be available near the stage from 3:30 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.

The live show will wrap up with fire dancers at the amphitheater from 11:00 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. before the fireworks set off over the Muskoseepi Park reservoir.

Grande Prairie’s own “Lady Degenerates” slo-pitch team is heading to nationals with big hopes of making a mark on the Canadian stage.

The team qualified for nationals after a superstar performance in Leduc during the provincial championship. Now, the Lady Degenerates’ eyes are on the prize when they head to the national competition in Saskatoon.

Natasha Hamelin, a player and representative of the Lady Degenerates says the competition means so much to both her team and the local slo-pitch community as a whole.

“We’re really excited to represent Grande Prairie and Alberta,” she says. “The Lady Degenerates also compete in the Kakwa Ladies Slo-Pitch League and that’s every Wednesday with 13 teams and plans to grow.”

The Lady Degenerates consists of a team of players between the ages of 23 and 50, with an average age of 39, which Hamelin says only serves to drive the team further as they compete against teams much younger than them.

“We’re excited to show other teams that us older gals still have it.”

“For me personally, I like to show my kids that even as an adult, I can participate in sports, we’re all moms so I think we set a good example for the youth that we’re still staying active and we’re still taking time for ourselves because we often put ourselves last,” she says. “We’ve competed against teams that are a lot younger than us and we still got it out there on the diamond.”

To help offset the costs associated with sending the team to nationals, the Lady Degenerates have organized a fundraiser to be held on June 13th at The Den.

The night will include a $35 buffet dinner during the Oilers game, and a silent auction to help raise money to send the Degenerates to Saskatoon. Tickets will be available at the door.

Discussions continue to mount among city councillors regarding the potential hiring of “flex firefighters” at the Grande Prairie Fire Department.

Cost control remains a top driver for the topic, as GPFD firefighters have been stretched thin over the past years, leading to excess overtime hours and fatigue among staff.

GPFD Chief Mark VanWerkhoven says council approved the concept of hiring two flex firefighters to explore the model and its potential benefits, and his report highlighted numerous benefits of moving towards a more flexible model for new firefighters.

“The newest firefighters within our ranks would be considered flex firefighters, meaning that we can dynamically move them from different shifts and different platoons where the need is greatest,” he says. “Today’s report essentially validated the overtime offset, and in fact exceeded the overtime offset that we predicted two years ago.”

Chief VanWerkhoven adds that the new model could include a significant number of both “qualitative and quantitative benefits” for both GPFD staff and residents alike.

“Of course the more firefighters we have in the community, the more we can deploy in the event of some sort of sustained incident,” he says. “In terms of mental health, fatigue, and just the overall culture and work environment, if we can limit that overtime and ensure that we can support vacation time and everything else that firefighters or any employee is looking for in terms of quality of life.”

VanWerkhoven describes the current model of off-duty callback on GPFD firefighters as “beneficial” for the community; however, the new model could be seen as a balancing act to ensure firefighters retain a high quality of life while providing essential services to the city.

“As urban of a fire department as we are, we still rely to a large extent, on off-duty callback any time we have any sustained event,” he says. “That’s a very beneficial model to our community, it’s worked well in our community for a long time, and it can continue to work really well in the community for some time to come, but it requires a careful balance.”

The discussion has now shifted to the potential hiring of four additional firefighters for the GPFD, and council is set to discuss the matter further in the weeks to come.

The Grande Prairie Public Library is gearing up for its summertime festivities in a big way, with numerous events and developments throughout the warm season.

GPPL Director Hailey McCullough presented a report during city council’s committee meetings on June 11th, describing some of the new and continued projects going on at the library.

Recently, the library opted to open up on Sundays, which McCullough says was an easy decision based on the growing number of visitors the GPPL has seen this year.

“We’ve really seen an uptick in the number of people coming to the library over the years, our overall visitors compared to the previous year were up almost 20 per cent,” she says. “We see a demand for the service, we’re seeing more people come through the doors this year than last year already so its a good time to look at expanding our hours.”

McCullough was candid when asked about staff losses by council members. Crediting her strong core team of staff at the library, McCullough says the facility is now back at full capacity, providing the services so many residents have come to know.

“It was definitely difficult, we’re lucky to have a really good core team at the library and everyone just pitched in and helped, we made it work because we had to,” she says. “Everyone did a little bit more work to keep things running smoothly and make sure the library is there for the public.”

In terms of summer programming, the GPPL is gearing up to begin its traditional Summer Reading Games program for children, teens, and adults, and this year’s theme is “cosmic circus.”

“We might have some programs where we’re doing things that are in line with a circus kind of theme, or things that are aligned with cosmic, outer space, astronauts, that sort of thing,” McCullough says.

The events will begin during the GPPL’s annual Kickoff Party on June 22nd, which will see activities like face painting, carnival games, and even a bouncy castle for residents to enjoy.

Eight fires started at the Grande Prairie Golf and Country Club are now under investigation lead by the Alberta RCMP Forestry Crimes Unit. Authorities say between April 29, 2024 and May 10, 2024, a total of eight fires have been investigated on site. Despite all being on the property of the golf course itself, there is direct access to the Bear Creek trail system. All fires were extinguished by the fire department and patrons of the club.

Police among the 8 blazes, they are looking for potential dashcam or surveillance footage from at least two they consider suspicious:

At approximately 12:23 a.m. on May 31, 2024, a fire was reported on Resources Road near the Grande Prairie Golf and Country Club. The Alberta RCMP FCU is asking for dash camera footage from May 30, 2024 at 11:00 p.m. to May 31, 2024, at 1:30 a.m. The second fire, reported around 12:30 a.m. on June 1, 2024, was near Resources Road near the Grande Prairie Golf and Country Club. The Alberta RCMP FCU investigated the suspicious fire and are asking for dash camera footage from May 31, 2024, at 11:00 p.m. to June 1, 2024, at 1:30 a.m.

Anyone with information or footage of these areas or incidents is asked to please contact the Grande Prairie RCMP at 780-830-5701, or anonymously through Crime Stoppers.

The Reverend Forbes Homestead and Pioneer Hospital opens for the 2024 summer season on June 12th.

The Forbes Homestead was built between 1911 and 1912, making it the oldest home and the first hospital in Grande Prairie, and Mayor Jackie Clayton describes the facility as one of Grande Prairie’s “historic gems.”

To celebrate, the city is offering free guided tours of Grande Prairie’s oldest home from 1:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. Wednesday to Saturday throughout the summer until August 31st.

“We’re excited to welcome the community back for another summer filled with grander tours, teas, and timeless memories and encourage residents to check out this immersive experience to see how the first settlers lived,” Clayton says.

Festivities are scheduled throughout the summer, including the return of the beloved afternoon tea event, set to return in July and August.

County residents are being asked to keep their eyes peeled as clubroot disease has been observed to be on the rise.

Clubroot is described as a serious, soil-borne disease that affects all plants in the broccoli family, and of most concern to the county, canola. The disease forms galls on the roots, destroying a plant’s ability to take in water and nutrients.

The county says the disease is becoming increasingly prevalent throughout the province. Annual inspections in the region revealed two early-stage infections which were confirmed by lab testing; however, no signs were evident in the crop.

As a result, residents are advised to sanitize all agricultural and industrial equipment to keep the disease from spreading.

Additionally, property owners are advised to ensure no soil is transported onto fields, establish a dedicated cleaning area for equipment, and treat any new or used equipment with a two per cent bleach solution for “at least 10 minutes.”

The county is requiring all industrial operators to follow the clubroot protocol to mitigate the effects of the disease in the region.

The Sexsmith Secondary School Girls’ High School rugby squad is holding their heads high as they return from Red Deer with a provincial gold medal.

Head Coach and Principal Mike Lauzon describes the weekend victory as “unexpected” because his team is so young. According to Lauzon, the team has no Grade 12 athletes, just four Grade 11s, six Grade 10s, and 15 Grade nines on the roster, which proved to be a challenge when they played their old rival- the Rimbey Spartans.

“We expected to get some experience out of this, Rimbey has a couple girls that are on the National team already so they’re a very good program, they have eight Grade 12s on their team, so to battle them and beat them twice was a big accomplishment for us,”

The first half of the final went scoreless as the girls stayed physical in the match; however, Sexsmith managed to score three tries in the final half to win 19-0 against Rimbey in the final.

“It was really a war of attrition, both teams played great but I just couldn’t believe our young girls really stepped up, and really played tough and laid everything on the line, it was great,” Lauzon says.

Coach Lauzon says the key factor in his team’s success was the willingness of his junior players to step up physically and mentally to compete against girls up to four years older than them.

“I think we just clicked in those last four games, our last regular season game, and then our three games at provincials, everybody started hitting and just playing really tough, really physical, demanding rugby, which is awesome,” he says.

To celebrate the win, Coach Lauzon says his girls seemed to be interested most in a victory meal.

“The whole school gets hot dogs, that was the first thing the girls asked me when we won was- are we going to get hot dogs?” Coach Lauzon laughs.

It’s been a winning season for the school, boasting numerous provincial showings this year across several sports, and Coach Lauzon says he is looking forward to continuing the streak with his young squad next season.

The Fairview Health Complex Emergency Department will be temporarily without on-site physician coverage for 24 hours this week.

From 7:00 a.m. June 10th to 7:00 a.m. June 11th, the ED will be without an on-site physician due to the inability to secure coverage.

AHS says nursing staff will remain on-site to provide triage, assessments, and referrals for patients to alternative emergency departments as needed.

Patients and residents can still access 9-1-1 during a medical emergency and EMS will remain available to the community.

Residents are also reminded to call Health Link at 8-1-1 for 24/7 non-emergency health-related questions. Additionally, patients seeking care at the ED are encouraged to access services that may be available through local pharmacies.

The fourth annual residential schools victim and survivor memorial crosswalk painting saw its “best turnout ever” on June 7th.

Dozens of Grande Prairie residents including parents and kids, youth groups, and folks who just came by to support, flocked to the corner of 97th Avenue and 101st Street to dip their hands in orange paint and mark their support for those affected by residential schools.

Event coordinator Meghan Zatko says the turnout keeps growing every year, with some residents even making a sort of pilgrimage just to be a part of the occasion.

“There was a mom who walked blocks and blocks just to come to put her handprints on, which is so nice to see,” she says. “I could start crying this year, it’s so phenomenal to see the biggest turnout we’ve ever had. and there’s so many kids this year which is huge because they’re going to grow up knowing they matter.”

Zatko says she sees the annual affair as a recognition of the historic injustices so many Indigenous individuals have faced, and serves as an opportunity for residents to unite under one common goal.

“It’s a recognition of the injustices that happened to our Indigenous community, throughout centuries and is still happening today, and it’s bringing the community together to show unification and acknowledgment that these things are happening but we want to change it,” she says.

The crosswalk is strategically placed in front of the Grande Prairie Friendship Centre, which Zelko says she hopes will have a positive effect on the Indigenous youth involved in Friendship Centre programming.