ATHABASCA - Councillors at one of Athabasca County's larger summer villages are lamenting the decrease in police visibility this summer.
During the July 15 council meeting, councillor John Wasmuth brought up the absence of RCMP patrols through the summer village.
"Maybe it's because I'm not out there all the time, but I have not seen an RCMP patrol through the summer village at all this year," Wasmuth said.
"Normally they drive through during the ball tournament and sometimes during Lake Days. I have yet to see a cruiser in the summer village."
According to Mayor Chad Newton, Athabasca County's eight summer villages decided to stop paying for extra police services when the Government of Alberta changed the funding model for municipalities and the RCMP. Starting in 2020, the costs for small municipalities — communities with less than 5,000 people — rose by 10 per cent, then another 20 per cent in 2023.
When the provincial agreement with the RCMP expired on April 1, 2025, municipalities were set to see a further 39 per cent increase, which the province announced it would cover for the 2025-26 fiscal year.
"The reason they would come out on the weekends is because the summer villages were paying an additional cost to have them come out," Newton said. "There is no cost for that. I think we can complain about it, but the reason they were there on the weekends is because we would pay for that enhanced policing."
"There's no doubt, I definitely think we should get more representation for what we're paying."
Speeding was one concern raised by councillors, as the municipality's bylaw enforcement officer doesn't hand out speeding tickets. The other major concern, according to Newton, is property crime during the fall and winter months when fewer residents are at their properties.
The most recent financial budget posted on the summer village's website is from 2024, when the municipality paid $21,000 for policing.
Councillors unanimously voted to send a letter to the RCMP asking for further information about statistics and enforcement plans.
The Athabasca RCMP did not reply a request for further information about the crime rates or enforcement in the summer village as of press time.
