Following the announcement of the provincial government’s 2024 Budget, the Government of Alberta announced that nearly $2 billion will go towards planning, design, and construction of highway projects around the province.

The province says the investment will keep Alberta competitive by improving economic corridors and linking important markets both in and outside of the province.

In the Peace Region, it has been confirmed the highly anticipated Highway 40 twinning project south of Grande Prairie will see funding from the budget and is actually ahead of schedule by one year according to officials.

Grande Prairie MLA Nolan Dyck says he sees the project as a timely one, as Grande Prairie’s population continues to grow, establishing the city as a significant economic player in Alberta.

“If we can bring that around, it one- frees up city traffic and reduces those numbers, but it also allows for free-flowing of more trucks around Grande Prairie, so we can haul more, and I am hopeful many big projects come to northern Alberta,” he says.

Additionally, the province says Budget 2024 will see an investment of $151.2 million over three years for more than 50 engineering projects with $100 million going to more than 30 projects that address future infrastructure needs including the widening of Highway 40 between Hinton and Grande Cache.

The Grande Prairie Men’s Shed responded to a call for dog houses by local dog shelter- Tsintah Siberian Husky Rescue in a big way this week.

The Men’s Shed operates as a sort of social club for Grande Prairie men to get together, socialize, and work on a variety of projects.

According to Men’s Shed founder Richard Nasedkin, the choice to help out the husky shelter was an easy one as the group is always searching for projects to help the community.

“It’s a lot easier for us to have something to focus on when we’re meeting, so the dog houses are quite doable from a space point of view and it doesn’t take a lot of materials,” he says.

According to Nasedkin, the call for dog houses was put out around Christmas time, and the nature of the shelter provided a unique challenge for the group.

“We first reached out to them over the winter, they weren’t sure what kind of dog house they wanted but they had some certain criteria because she does husky breeds only,” he says. “She wanted to be able to move it around, so it took us a little while to come up with a prototype and we had some materials donated so we made the first dog house.”

The dog houses were constructed using 100 per cent recycled materials, and Nasedkin says the most recent delivery will be the first of many.

“We actually recycled all the materials for this particular dog house and then any future ones the sheeting will be donated, but the bones of it, the two-by-fours and stuff will be from recycled wood,”  he says. “Once she decides how many she wants and if she needs to change the dimensions a little bit, we’ll come up with a plan, we’re going to do some work this Spring and pre-cut a lot of the boards and all the members will have a sort of assembly line and we’ll crank out as many as she needs.”

Nasedkin says he is quite proud of the work his group accomplished, and he sees the dog house as an approachable project for all members whether they are new to woodworking or seasoned professionals.

Men’s Shed members Ron Johnson, Ivan Patry, Anka Amertsengel, and Richard Nadeskin made the delivery by hand on March 20th

AHS has announced the Fairview Health Complex Emergency Department will be temporarily without on-site physician coverage three times between March 25th and April 1st.

From 7:00 a.m. March 25th to 7:00 a.m. March 26th, 7:00 a.m. March 27th to 7:00 a.m. March 29th, and 7:00 a.m. March 30th to 7:00 a.m. April 1st, the ED will be without an on-site doctor.

According to AHS, nursing staff will remain on-site in the Emergency Department to provide triage, assessments, and referrals to alternate Emergency Departments in the area as needed.

EMS will also remain available during this time and residents should call 9-1-1 in the event of a medical emergency.

Additionally, any non-emergency health-related medical questions can be referred to Health Link at 8-1-1 any time.

Update: The Grande Prairie RCMP has located and confirmed Peter Peters is safe. 

The Grande Prairie RCMP is asking for help from the public in finding missing 40-year-old Peter Peters.

According to police, Peters was last seen in Grande Prairie on March 14th and has family in La Crete, and Prince George.

Investigators describe Peters as having a pale complexion, standing six feet tall, weighing 185 pounds with blonde hair and blue eyes, and is known to wear a goatee.

Anyone with information regarding Peters’ whereabouts is asked to contact the Grande Prairie RCMP at (780)-830-5700 or anonymously through Crime Stoppers.

Local high school student Brett English has been selected to participate in an international learning opportunity to explore historic sites around Europe.

Every year, the Vimy Foundation announces a select group of youth recipients who will participate in the Vimy Pilgrimage Award. According to the foundation, the experimental program provides Canadian youth between the ages of 14 and 17 the opportunity to participate in the pilgrimage across France and pay their respects at the Canadian National Vimy Memorial.

English will join 19 other students from across the country to travel across France and Belgium from April 3rd to April 10th.

The Vimy Foundation says the program includes daily visits to significant sites, museums, cemeteries, and World War One battlefields, with the intent to immerse students in the history and gain a better understanding of the impact the war has had on modern society.

The program promises that participants will gain transferable skills and perspectives to allow students to connect with their peers and other leaders in their communities.

The County of Grande Prairie is continuing its efforts to advise residents regarding how to stay protected ahead of the anticipated 2024 wildfire season.

Recently, the county encouraged residents to view FireSmart Alberta’s “FireSmart Begins at Home” guide which features a number of tips to mitigate wildfire risk for property owners.

Three tips were highlighted by the county and include moving anything combustible such as firewood, toys, and patio furniture within 10 metres of your home to ensure those items are more manageable and out of the way in the event of a wildfire. FireSmart emphasized the importance of prioritizing the first 1.5 metres of your home and moving outwards and placing flammable items in sheds, homes, and garages.

Additionally, residents are advised to remove dry leaves, tree needles, and other flammable materials from roofs and gutters ahead of the warm season, and use a rake to take care of any dry grass as mowing can create sparks.

A full comprehensive list is available online on FireSmart Alberta’s website.

The Grande Prairie RCMP is seeking help from the public in finding missing 22-year-old Romeo Papastesis.

According to police, Papastesis has no fixed address and was last seen in Grande Prairie on March 18th.

Papastesis is described as a man with a medium complexion, standing five feet eight inches tall, weighing 155 pounds with brown hair and eyes, and is known to wear white contact lenses.

Anyone with information regarding his whereabouts are asked to contact the Grande Prairie RCMP at (780)-830-5701 or anonymously through crime stoppers.

Another step for the Grande Prairie Police Service came on March 19th announcing the appointment of the police commission’s new Public Complaints Director.

Lorrie Sitler has been serving as Executive Director of the Grande Prairie Police Commission since Spring 2023 and was chosen due to her background in public relations roles across the province.

The position is a requirement for all police agencies in Alberta and Sitler says it is an important role, as it gives members of the public the option to make complaints against the GPPS in a formal and friendly setting without having to deal with the police service directly.

“The opportunity for a public complaints director for the citizens is they have somewhere to go that is not the police service,” she says.

In her position, Sitler will engage with the public during internal investigations, monitor the process, and provide monthly reports to the police commission regarding any complaints in progress.

“It allows the community to have somebody within the community that is keeping an eye on any complaints that are happening,” she says. “It’s definitely a great accountability piece, and one of the benefits of moving to a municipal police service.”

Grande Prairie Police Commission Chair Dan Wong says he sees Sitler’s appointment as a step in the right direction as the police service continues to move forward with the transition to a municipal police service.

“This is definitely another step in the right direction, our first few months we were establishing the commission as an organization and the next few steps are now focused on how we get that 360 scan of Grande Prairie to identify all of its issues and monitor the transition, so we can establish a police service that’s responsive to the city,” he says.

According to officials, the transition timeline is on track as recruiting efforts continue and the rollout of the first GPPS officers is expected sometime this year.

Bonnetts Energy Centre was a packed house on March 21st for the city’s 2024 Youth Career Expo.

More than 2,000 young people between the ages of 12 and 30 wandered around the rink exploring a variety of career options and booths from local businesses and schools from around the country.

A number of students were in attendance, and Chanel Brathwaite, a junior high school teacher at St. Gerrard says the event was an exciting opportunity for students to explore their options after high school.

“I think it’s really great for them to see all that they have for choices,” she says. “The benefit of bringing the kids is giving them an opportunity to expose them to opportunities that they have outside of school, even ones that I’m not knowledgeable of or ones that are new.”

Brathwaite says she was especially pleased to see the variety of booths at the event, which she says shows the shift in mentality in the school system from the traditional high school to college route, to one that emphasizes trades and other employment opportunities.

“When I went to school, it was very much pushing degrees and university and that was kind of it, but now it even gives me a better idea of how to best support my students in what they want to do moving forward,” she says. “I’m a French teacher so I’m always trying to see ways French can be applied to their future lives so it’s interesting to see what’s available so I can support them in that as well.”

In terms of interest, Brathwaite noted how open-minded many of her students were to options outside of university. She says the trend is now to move into trades and other in-demand careers, especially in rural Alberta.

Open Farm Days are returning to Alberta to open up the opportunity for consumers to see where their food comes from.

Tim Carson, CEO of the Alberta Association of Agricultural Societies says the two-day celebration gives farmers and agri-tourism officials a unique opportunity to connect with consumers across the province.

“This is a great opportunity for people on farm, or agri-tourism businesses to really take a hold and utilize the marketing tools that we use to bring people to your farm,” he says. “In this day and age we are sometimes three or four generations away from the farm these days and we don’t necessarily have the opportunity to connect to where our food is grown and where it comes from in Alberta.”

Last year saw 130 host farms participating and locally, Carson says Grande Prairie showed a high level of dedication to the event, and plans to grow the event even further in the north are in place.

“We had some very dedicated farms in the Grande Prairie or Northwest region of Alberta, we’re certainly looking to grow that number,” he says. “There’s great space there, and super agriculture in the area, I think there’s tremendous potential.”

Carson says farms are not the only ones who benefit from the event. He says the opportunity presents a chance for agri-tourism entities and individuals to use the Ag Soceities’ tools to educate themselves on trends.

Additionally, Carson says the event encourages Albertans to explore more than the traditional tourism hotspots through a mapping tool on the Open Farm Days website.

“We are one of the only provinces in Canada in general that actually produces more food than we consume,” he says. “This is a huge province with tremendous geography and it’s a great opportunity for people to go out and explore Alberta.”

Each year, Open Farm Days select a mascot or theme, and this year is the year of the alpaca. Carson says the camel’s fuzzy cousin is not only photogenic and loved by many, but serves as an important piece of Alberta’s growing fibre industry and shows the diversity of Alberta’s agriculture industry.

According to officials, Alpacas are a relatively new species to Alberta farms, but after arriving to the scene in the 1980’s, their population has skyrocketed across the province, with a reported 432 farms utilizing the animal for their fleece.

“One of the things that’s really important for us is to be able to shine a light on the diversity of agriculture here in Alberta,” Carson says. The variety that comes with that food production is really outstanding.”

Registration for farms and ranches to be part of this year’s event closes on April 30th, and interested individuals are encouraged to visit the Open Farm Days website to register.

What might have been a strange sight for some was actually a purposeful attempt by city administration to get ahead of the spring melt.

With temperatures climbing up to record-setting highs of 21°C over the weekend, some residents might have noticed snow crews operating around the city salting the roads, and working to get ahead of the inevitable slushy season when temperatures get more consistent.

Deputy Mayor Gladys Blackmore says taking advantage of the unseasonably warm temperatures helps mitigate some of the hazards on the road that come with springtime.

“It is very helpful if we can get ahead of spring by getting rid of some of the ice ahead of time, or opening up those places that get ice and are prone to flooding,” she says. “When we have the resources, the staff available to do that, I think we would always try to do that in the Spring.”

It is not uncommon for crews to begin operations when the weather warms up; however, city officials noted how unusual it might have seemed to residents so early in the year.

“There’s been lots of years where spring has been a lot more difficult to deal with, so people might notice things this year they might not have noticed previously,” Blackmore says. “It would be happening anyway, but perhaps later on, our administration is just getting ahead of the curve on that.”

Blackmore says whenever the next opportunity presents itself, and resources are available, crews will continue operating to ensure an easy transition into the warm season.

Grande Prairie City Council’s Invest GP Committee greenlit a change to a policy regarding the Barrier Free Grant funding cap on March 19th.

The Barrier Free Grant is a funding model that allows businesses and property owners to apply for matching funding from the city to improve a property’s accessibility for residents in wheelchairs, suffering from an injury, or mothers with strollers.

Until recently, businesses and property owners were only able to receive up to a matching $10K from the grant, which Deputy Mayor Gladys Blackmore sees as inadequate for any significant projects.

“At $10,000 that means that they have to have at least $10,000 to match the grant, and really $20,000 is not sufficient to create those accessible avenues,” she says.

According to city administration, from 2021 to 2023, eight of fifteen applicants would have received more than the $10K they were given, if the cap was higher.

Ultimately, the decision was made to up the cap by an additional $10K bringing the allotted amount for eligible applicants to $20K in city funding, or $40K in total.

“This allows companies greater access to funds,” Blackmore says. “By increasing the amount of the grant, we’re allowing for bigger projects, more important projects, or more projects where the issue is more of an issue to start with.”

Interested businesses and property owners can apply by contacting the City of Grande Prairie.

The County and City of Grande Prairie have announced a partnership to invite residents to celebrate Earth Day on April 20th, at the Montrose Cultural Centre.

The drop-in event is scheduled from 12:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. and will feature a variety of education opportunities, demonstrations from local businesses, and activities for attendees.

The county says presentations on bee-friendly native plants alongside an opportunity for attendees to interact with a live hive of bees, a seed bar for residents to help residents start their gardens, and an electric vehicle showcase will be available for eventgoers.

Additionally, interactive activities such as face painting, themed cookie decorating, and sustainable practices demonstrations put on by local businesses and initiatives will be available.

Grande Prairie Mayor Jackie Clayton says the event recognizes how the city can contribute to “environmental stewardship” in the community.

“This event serves as a reminder of the importance of protecting our planet through eco-friendly practices and reducing waste, ensuring a healthier and greener future for generations to come,” she says.

As a result of the event, the city is offering free city-wide transit throughout the day in an effort to promote environmentally friendly transportation.

The City of Grande Prairie and the Communities Building Youth Futures initiative are putting on an event to educate Grande Prairie youth regarding career opportunities at the 2024 Youth Career Discovery Expo.

On March 21st, from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at Bonnetts Energy Centre, youth and adults between 14 and 30 years old, will have the opportunity to explore the realm of career possibilities and educational pathways through more than 100 exhibitors relevant to today’s job market. The city says Bonnetts will be transformed into a “dynamic space” for exploration, discovery, and inspiration.

According to the city, more than 2,000 students are already registered, and numerous prizes are up for grabs. Youth can complete the event survey and enter a draw for a chance to win high-ticket items such as a MacBook, Apple pencils, and iPads.

Grande Prairie Mayor Jackie Clayton says the expo presents a unique opportunity for Grande Prairie’s youth job seekers and helps build futures within the city.

“This Youth Career Discovery Expo is a testament to what we can achieve when we come together to support the potential of our youth,” she says. “I believe [it] will pave the way for many of our young residents to achieve their career and educational goals, and build futures right here in Grande Prairie.”

The event is free to attend, which the city says will ensure maximum accessibility for every interested teen and young adult.

The Bear Creek Reservoir was a hot topic of discussion during Grande Prairie City Council’s Committee Meetings on March 19th.

The reservoir in Muskoseepi Park has been a heavily debated item among councillors and has been without water for a number of years and now, is not scheduled to be refilled until 2026.

In 2022, council opted to spend an additional $885K on repairs to the structure and the number has been budgeted for the past two years.

“It is in the budget, it’s a tentative number because we really don’t know what needs to be done, and then the cost of it will of course come at a later time when we get a better idea of those costs,” Deputy Mayor Gladys Blackmore says.

Blackmore expressed her frustrations regarding the dam saying “other levels of government” continue to slow down the city’s ability to undertake the project.

“Unfortunately, there are other levels of government that impede our ability to bring the reservoir up to its true aesthetic look as soon as we would like,” she says. “Until we address the issue of cladding the dam, we’re really stuck with the fact that we’re only going to have a creek flowing through that.”

Hopes remain high, however, and Blackmore says the city is moving forward to mitigate the issues the city faces due to the red tape surrounding the project.

“It is unfortunate,” she says. “It is my hope that we can get the reservoir up to its full level of water, prior to 2026.”

The reservoir was originally constructed in 1947 to provide a water source to the city, and due to its age, officials say it is likely the dam will be subject to significant maintenance issues.

“The reservoir dam was built in 1944, so it has served the city well, and it would not be surprising if there are cladding issues there quite frankly,” Blackmore says.

As it stands, the reservoir is likely to remain empty until at least 2026.

Bonanza School’s Grade 5 and 6 students have been hard at work learning how to braille and have delivered 100 books to the library at Crystal Park School in Grande Prairie for visually impaired students.

Since September, 16 Bonanza School students have worked together to translate books into braille and recorded themselves reading the books to offer students with visual impairments and other disabilities a variety of ways to enjoy stories.

According to the Peace Wapiti School Division, what started as a visit from Bonanza School teacher for the visually impaired Karen Beatty, turned into a large-scale project, turning 100 books into braille for students from the Grande Prairie Public School Division, Peace River School Division, Holy Family Catholic Regional Division, and many others.

Bonanza School Principal Theresa Simmonds says the students helped edit each other’s braille work and held one another accountable to ensure high-quality audio which took “approximately 1400 recordings” to ensure perfect audio for all the books.

“I think they were harder on each other than I would have been if I was involved,” Simmonds laughed.

The PWSD says students shared they feel more confident in their writing and editing skills, enjoyed learning a new language, and feel more empathy for others.

The books were donated to Crystal Park School on March 12th, and will be available to any student across the five divisions involved.

The City of Grande Prairie is seeking feedback from residents as the Museum Expansion Project continues this Spring.

Recently, the South Peace Regional Archives relocated from its former space in the museum to Centre 2000, opening space for the museum to begin its expansion plans that have been in discussion since 2016.

According to the city, the expansion aims to increase storage space, add a new exhibit gallery, and improve the existing structure. Grande Prairie Mayor says it is “exciting” to see the expansion project beginning after nearly a decade of efforts.

“This project not only enhances our cultural heritage but also strengthens our community’s identity and sense of pride,” she says.

As a result, residents are asked to provide feedback on what they would like to see included in the expansion and attend one of two scheduled open houses.

The city says the open houses will include 30-minute guided tours of the museum and provides attendees with the opportunity to share feedback afterward.

The tours are scheduled from April 9th to the 10th from 4:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. respectively, and registration is not required.

It’s an emergency scenario for the Cairn Housing Society as funding becomes an increasing problem for the low-income housing organization.

Carrie Bartsch, Executive Director for the Cairn Housing Society describes the issue as a “crisis” situation and appeared as a delegation in Grande Prairie City Council’s committee meetings on March 19th with a $30,000 emergency funding request to support the organization’s operation, which she says is not even enough to meet status quo.

“We’re struggling to find funding to keep this going and without this, we’re going to have a lot of people falling through the cracks,” she says. “The $30,000 is to limp us along until we can get other funding.”

The facility operates as an 84-unit apartment building with support services available to its 150 residents and Bartsch says it’s the residents who will be hit the hardest if new funding does not come along soon.

“People live here, and we help them with every aspect of their life,” she says. “Having the families in there really brings a sense of accountability to folks that are living there.”

The Housing Society provides numerous support systems to its residents including educational classes, mental health support groups, financial literacy classes, and consistent food security, but Bartsch says without proper funding, the organization will simply be unable to support the staffing and operations costs that come with those services.

“We need money to keep our staff going,” she says. “We can apply to get a new pot, we can apply to get a board room table, but who’s paying for those staff to keep going, and as it is, I volunteer most of my time as the Executive Director, and Wendy volunteers her time as our bookkeeper, and without that, we’re going to fold and the vulnerable people, the ones who haven’t experienced homelessness or re-enter into homelessness are going to be the ones that hurt.”

According to Bartsch, the Cairn Housing Society has applied for numerous funding options from the province, and after being denied FCSS funding and having to wait for the mandatory three-year cycle to reapply, the organization has run out of options.

“We’ve received absolutely zero funding other than private donations, we’re actually using bottle money and bottle collection right now to buy food for our food security program,” she says. “We have applied to FCSS, and they told us that our funding for this year is gone, we applied for the RFP for prevention and diversion because we ticked all the boxes, we provide holistic wraparound services, but they said we didn’t qualify because we’re only supposed to pick one service, and you have to apply for a new RFP for every service.”

As a result of their request, Grande Prairie City Council’s Public and Protective Services Committee chose to bring the funding discussion to the council’s next Monday meeting at a figure of $16,000 instead of the requested $30,000.

Deputy Mayor Gladys Blackmore says she feels council “does not do enough” to support Grande Prairie residents who are at risk of homelessness; however, she says she does not think the full $16,000 proposal will be approved on Monday.

“None of us really like it when we see a request coming forward for emergency funding because we sort of feel like we should be doing a better job, but I do believe this will receive some positive acceptance,” she says. “The people who are at risk of homelessness, I feel that we do not do enough to support, so I’m happy to see this come, unfortunately it’s not going to be for the full amount I don’t think.”

Residents who wish to support the Cairn Housing Society are asked to consider bottle and food donations, and volunteer opportunities.

It’s been a hefty competition season for Grande Prairie’s figure skaters as they return home from the Arctic Winter Games in Mat-Su Valley, Alaska.

Team Alberta North came home with 20 medals in total including ten golds, eight silvers, and two bronze medals.

Cheryl Jobson, Program Director for the Grande Prairie Skating Club, attended the event with the female figure skaters and says she “couldn’t be prouder” of their impressive showing on the international stage.

“We had amazing skates from the girls, they skated their hearts out,” she says. “It’s an international competition, so there’s athletes from around the world competing at the Arctic Winter Games, the level of competition is high, and the experience for the girls was amazing.”

According to Jobson, the past few weeks have been hectic for some of the athletes on the team, with two skaters competing at the Alberta Winter Games in Grande Prairie in February.

“We’re just getting through our competition season so we’ve been competing pretty much since December.”

Jobson says the team is shifting into a post-season training system after such a demanding season.

“The skaters are pretty tired right now, so we’re kind of going into a new phase,” she says. “When you’re training to compete it’s a different kind of training than training to learn new things, so that’s kind of where we’re at.”

The team is set to regroup this Spring to evaluate the previous season and look at programming for the 2025 skating season.