Athabasca County’s potential was on display during the first annual Mayor’s brunch, hosted by the government and industry joint effort of the Alberta Energy Corridor (AEC).
The event, held on the morning of Oct. 13 at the Boyle Community Centre, brought together municipal officials from Boyle, the town of Athabasca, county of Thorhild and Lac La Biche with representatives from local and non-local energy and industry companies.
AEC worked in conjunction with the village of Boyle and the local Chamber of Commerce to put on the event.
The nearly 100 people that showed up to the event were treated to a brunch provided by Boyle-based restaurant and catering service Pine Berry Bistro, followed by speeches from AEC’s Executive Director Jodie Pruden, and guest speakers from the Northern Alberta Development Corporation, Portage College, Enbridge Pipelines and MEG Energy.
Colin Derko, AEC’s treasurer, acted as emcee to start the event.
“We’re really here to bring awareness to the amazing part of Alberta we live in,” he said, adding that AEC’s efforts were to get things moving in the region positioned to benefit greatly from the potential tripling of oil sands operations in the coming decades.
Pruden followed, thanking the people for their overwhelming support showed in coming together.
After the event she said she was impressed by the turnout, adding that the economic potential in the region may be bigger than she had first imagined.
Founded in 2009, AEC is mandated to make the region attractive to potential development, with recent projects like their land use strategy, which sets out six “nodes” to target development within the county’s borders.
Much of the day was about networking, and that goal was evident at each table, as municipal leaders and local company representatives mingled with people from as far away as Fort McMurray and Edmonton.
“We want to show that we’re active and engaged,” she said. “And not passively being the passengers in this ride that is going to be the oil sands activity out here.”
She added that it was important to demonstrate the area’s support to industry giants like MEG and Enbridge, to show that the people of Athabasca welcome such investment.
Moving forward, she said she may include a little more lead time to plan such an event, citing timing conflicts with Athabasca County councillors who were away on a strategic planning retreat in Edmonton. Councillor Lionel Cherniwchan represented the town of Athabasca.
Boyle mayor Don Radmanovich was the only mayor from within the county at the event. He was joined by the entire Boyle council and chief administrative officer Charlie Ashbey.
“I think that the AEC is doing a great job for the region as a whole and the future looks good for Boyle as well as the rest of the area,” Radmanovich said.
Pruden added that she would like to move future events around the county, giving places like Athabasca, Grassland and Wandering River a chance to engage with industry.
