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February 5, 2008 Vol. 33 No. 27  
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Heading
to polls March 3

By Don Patterson
Staff Reporter

Premier Ed Stelmach put his record over his first 14 months in office to the ultimate test on Monday when he announced Albertans will be going to the polls on March 3.
The election announcement was widely expected and followed the annual speech from the throne that afternoon.
Now that the writ has been dropped, Alberta’s political parties and their candidates are busy gearing up their campaigns for the Highwood and Foothills–Rocky View ridings. The election date had been a tightly guarded secret known only to a few key people.
In fact, Progressive Conservative incumbent Agriculture Minister George Groeneveld learned of the election date six hours before the announcement.
While he may not have known the date, he has been busy preparing for the election and won’t rest on his laurels.
“I’m not taking anything for granted. In an election, I run like I’m in third place,” he said.
Now that he knows the election date, Groeneveld said he’s ready to hit the hustings.
Groeneveld will have campaign offices in High River and Okotoks, with the main office to be located in High River.
Sustainable Resources minister Ted Morton will seek re-election in the Foothills-Rockieview constituency.
Both the Alberta Liberal and New Democratic Parties kicked off their campaigns before Stelmach dropped the writ.
High River resident Stan Shedd will hit the campaign trail for the Liberals in the Highwood constituency and candidate Herb Coburn will run for the party in the Foothills Rocky View riding.
Shedd has been an active member of the party in other ridings in the past and got the nod over the weekend. He said he is in the process of putting his platform together and preparing for the campaign.
“I’m trying to get ready now,” he said. “Everybody seemed to think it was going to be called, over the last couple weeks everyone seemed to think there was going to be one called.”
The NDP has selected candidates Ricardo DeMenezes and Carolyn Boulton to run in the Foothills – Rocky View and Highwood constituencies, respectively.
The Alberta Green Party has named Black Diamond area resident Larry Ashmore as its candidate in the Foothills – Rocky View riding. The Alberta Green Party hasn’t selected a candidate for the Highwood constituency.
Ashmore said he is building his team from scratch and is ready to mount a challenge to Morton.
“We’re at that point and I’m putting together my team,” said the Black Diamond area resident.
He ran as the federal green party candidate in the Macleod Constiuency in the 2006 federal election.
He acknowledged he is up against a well backed, “old school” political opponent, but is looking to try new tactics including using the Internet and web sites such as You Tube to get his message out.
The Wildrose Alliance Party didn’t have candidates in either the Highwood or Foothills-Rockieview constituencies by Monday afternoon, but is hoping to have a full slate of candidates to run across the province.

 
Getting to the Point


?Five-year-old Charlie Johnson and his dad Trevor spar with a pair of antlers during Backyard Winter Wonders in the Belvedere House at the Cross Conservation Area southwest of Calgary on Saturday afternoon. The program taught youth about interesting things they could find in nature during the winter, like tracks in snow, grazed shrubs and clumps of winter fur. photo by Lyle Aspinall/Capture Photography Ltd.

Westmount school gets provincial funding

By Bruce Campbell
staff reporter

A new school in Westmount is a go, but there is still no indication if and when Christ the Redeemer School Division will get a new K-9 school in the Davisburg area.
Alberta Education announced on Wednesday a K-9 school for the Foothills School Division in the Westmount area is one of 14 new schools to be built in the province, which are expected to open in 2011 or 2012.
No cost estimates for the new schools, which are to be financed by a private-public partnership (P3), were announced.
The Westmount school couldn’t come quick enough, according to Foothills School Division secretary–treasurer Drew Chipman.
“While we are okay for this year and next year, if we continue to grow at the rate we have been (100 students combined at Dr. Morris Gibson, Percy Pegler and Big Rock schools) it will be tough to manage, without some sort of space, such as getting modular classrooms,” Chipman said.
Alberta Education Minister Ron Liepert acknowledged that there would be pressure points, such as at Foothills School Division, until the new schools are built in 2011 or 2012.
“We are not about to have learning taking place on the playground,” Liepert said in an interview. He said Alberta Education will be discussing with boards the need for modular classrooms and a priority will be established.
At present the production of modular classrooms, estimated at one a day, cannot meet the demands at Alberta schools.
Big Rock School principal Mike Evans said a school at Westmount would take pressure off his school and others in the area.
“We are packed to the gunwales with students,” Evans said of the situation at Big Rock School. At present the school is using the former staff room as a classroom.
“Right now, as we speak, we have about 14 or 15 kids in our staff room taking Language Arts,” Evans said.
“Next year, we are adding a Grades 1-3 Montessori class (an expected 25 students) and we are working on getting a modular classroom, without one, there will be challenges.”
He added there has been steady growth in the mainstream school for the past few years, including 10 new students who have enrolled in the past few weeks.
He said it is difficult to meet the Alberta Class-size initiative without the proper space.
“I will be up to 29 students in some of our classrooms,” Evans said.
Last year, a science equipment room and the learning support room were combined to make a classroom. Also the library was cut made smaller to make room for a classroom.
Laurie Copland, Okotoks school trustee for the division, said she was ‘ecstatic’ over the minister’s announcement on Wednesday.
“This has been a top priority for as long as I have been with the division,” Copland said.
She shared concerns about being able to manage increases in student enrolment until the new school is built
“I remember how we handled the situation before Heritage Heights opened (in September of 2006),“ Copland said. “Teachers and school administration came up with creative ideas where they can have classes. We have a very good and creative team — they will know what to do.”
Chipman said the division is studying how the P3 financing for the proposed school will work.
Christ the Redeemer
Peter Doyle, superintendent of schools for Christ the Redeemer said sure, it is disappointing that a new Kindergarten-Grade 9 school wasn’t on the list, but he said the division has little room to complain.
“We have done well in the past few years,” Doyle said. “We have had Holy Trinity Academy (Grade 10-12, which opened in May of 2006)) built in the past few years and we are currently having schools built in Canmore and Drumheller.”
However, the K -Grade 9 school at Davisburg remains the division’s top priority.
He said while St. Mary’s and Good Shepherd schools (K-6) and Jean Paul II (Grades 7-9) are still able to accommodate students, but they soon may be under pressure as Okotoks and the Foothills area continues to grow.


In this issue...

Catching a Kodiak
Oilers close the gap in South Division
See Sports

Mission Possible


Resident takes on weighty challenge
See Entertainment

 

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Editorial

 

 

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Published Wednesdays at Okotoks, Alberta, Canada. Serving the communities of Okotoks, Aldersyde, Black Diamond, DeWinton, Longview, Millarville, Priddis, Turner Valley, Bragg Creek, and the rural ratepayers of the M.D. of Foothills. And now the World. Established August 3, 1976.