No. 1 - COVID-19
It goes without saying that the continuing COVID-19 pandemic was the story of the year for not only Westlock, but the world.
The year that began with hope following the unveiling of a series of COVID-19 vaccines, ended with the rise of the Omicron variant and skyrocketing case counts that have yet to subside.
Ongoing measures, which included mandated vaccinations for some federal and provincial government departments to fight the spread, continue to impact how all Canadians work and live.
And while the province eased restrictions under its Open For Summer plan in early July, rising case counts and hospitalizations soon after ended any hope for a return to pre-COVID life.
Locally that’s meant people continue to wear masks when entering any business and must show proof of vaccination as part of the province’s restrictions exemption program when sitting down for a meal or entering recreation facilities like the Rotary Spirit Centre — remember, the RSC and pool didn’t even open until March due to then-COVID restrictions and were closed sporadically after.
Although COVID fatigue continues to grow, local vaccination rates, which had lagged behind the rest of the province for much of the year, have slowly improved. The year-end stats for Westlock, which includes west Thorhild County and south Lesser Slave River, state that 81.9 per cent of people over the age of 18 have received two shots — the number drops to 77.8 per cent when you account for kids ages 12-18, then to 72.1 per cent counting children ages five to 18.
And while there’s been a muted return to normal, 2021 was the second-straight year the ag fair had to be canceled due to uncertainty around the pandemic, while the town’s Canada Day and Light Up celebrations were significantly scaled back versus past years.
Schools did return to in-person learning in the fall, but with the rise of Omicron the province has delayed their reopening following the Christmas break until Jan. 10.
No. 2 - The Westlock Community Foundation
While the Westlock Community Foundation may be No. 2 on the list, a compelling argument can be made that the foundation will be the most important story for the next 50 years.
Unveiled at the end of September, the foundation is possible due to the proceeds of the estate of Albert and Florence Miller — their land went to auction in early December and fetched just over $8 million. Ultimately, the contribution from Albert and Florence, who passed away in 2020 and 2019 respectively, will be the foundation’s nest egg and the return on the investment from it is what will be used to fund community initiatives.
Mayor Ralph Leriger fought back tears when talking about the bequeathment in the fall, calling it a “game changer” for the community.
“I knew for some time that Albert was going to be generous to his community, he was just that kind of guy. But I didn’t realize how generous he was going to be. I get emotional about it, I can’t help it,” said Leriger Sept. 23. “It’s game-changer money. Municipal governments don’t get bequeathments like this, it doesn’t happen. We’re profoundly honoured by this generous gift.”
Leriger said that although the idea of simply using the windfall for one, or a handful of large projects, was tempting as “it could solve a lot of problems”, Miller was clear in his will that the money would be used for “community building” and couldn’t be used to reduce taxes or lumped into general revenue.
“We realized as a council that the eyes of the community would be on us and we had to do it right. And I’m absolutely honoured by what I think is a real vote of confidence from Albert in our council to do the right thing,” said Leriger.
The foundation taskforce is chaired by Wayne Peyre and has Brian Trueblood, Debbie McCoy, Jim Lawrence, Laura Morie, Sarah Hayward, Clem Fagnan, Randy Wold, Leriger and town CAO Simone Wiley as members. Leriger said that he expects the foundation will begin handing out donations at some point in 2023.
“The opportunities that can come out of this foundation for this region is immense,” added Peyre. “To me if we do our job right, we can be a place for other people to donate similar to what Albert and Florence did.”
No. 3 - Political upheaval
The October municipal election brought massive change to the bodies which govern the Town of Westlock, Westlock County and Village of Clyde, as well as the Pembina Hills and Evergreen Catholic school divisions.
Of the 19 seats on the town, county and village councils, 13 were claimed by newcomers — the village turned over its entire five-member council and has even had a byelection since to replace one councillor who resigned due to health concerns. On the school side, all the incumbent Pembina Hills trustees did not run again.
The county includes five new councillors, although Division 3 rep Ray Marquette previously served from January 2016 until October 2017. The municipality also has a new reeve, as recently-elected Division 7 councillor Christine Wiese unseated Division 2 councillor Jared Stitsen, who was the only county councillor to be acclaimed in the election. The only other county incumbent to keep his seat was Isaac Skuban in Division 5.
Over at the town, mayor Ralph Leriger was unopposed for a second-straight election and will serve a third-straight term. If he serves until 2025, Leriger will extend the run of three-term mayors in Westlock to 30 years, joining Bruce Lennon, 2004-2013, and Shirley Morie, 1995-2004 — until 2013, municipal council terms were only three years in length.
At the council table, Clem Fagnan, David Truckey and John Shoemaker, with a combined 45-plus years of municipal political experience, all retired in advance of the election.
Incumbent councillors Curtis Snell, Murtaza Jamaly and Randy Wold were the top-three vote getters and have been joined at the council table by Laura Morie, Jon Kramer and Abby Keyes.
Although now out of town politics, Truckey and Fagnan continue to serve as school board trustees. Truckey won the Pembina Hills town seat in a four-person race, while Fagnan defeated long-time trustee Caren Mueller for the Evergreen seat.
The other Pembina Hills seats in the Westlock ward are also filled by new reps, with Maureen Schnirer winning Ward 3 (Busby) while Sherry Allen was acclaimed in Ward 2 (Dapp/Jarvie/Fawcett) — Allen previously served one term as a trustee from 2010-2013.
No. 4 - Big digs
The Town of Westlock embarked on a number of high-profile infrastructure projects in 2021, highlighted by the $6.3 million 108th Street rehabilitation project, which will carry over into 2022, and the $3.56 million west industrial storm water project that’s roughly 95 per cent complete.
And as ambitious the past year was, the town has $8,111,961 worth of work planned for 2022 including the construction of a new $4.44-million public works shop and cold-storage facility, the demolition of Jubilee Arena, tabbed at $1 million, and $200,000 towards the revitalization of the Polymanth Playground — this year’s budget includes $1,648,461 worth of carry forward projects.
The 108th Street project had its share of challenges, ranging from supply-chain problems to the discovery of hydrocarbon containment from an old adjacent Imperial Oil fuel site, plus issues surrounding “as built” drawings that didn’t correspond with what was actually underground.
To deal with the “heavy concentrations of hydrocarbons” tons of contaminated soil had to be trucked away, while a plastic liner was installed underground to contain any possible further seepage — an initial estimate for the clean-up work, which Imperial is being billed for, was pegged at $1.6 million. Work on that side project started at the end of May and wrapped before July 1. Although the entire project isn't finished, the road was put back into a usable state for motorists until crews can get back on site in the spring.
And although it didn’t generate the same buzz as 108th due to construction happening on the largely unpopulated northwest side of town, the storm water project will protect residents and business from another 100-year flood like the one in August 2016 that caused millions of dollars in damages across the community.
The job included construction of a naturalized stormwater management pond that improves runoff quality by providing a site for suspended solids' settlement and removing contaminants from the watercourse. Additionally, the pond provides a buffer to downstream residents by easing the flows moving through the outlet of the Wabash Creek.
“These projects are going to touch people in their daily lives, especially in regard to the storm pond and the improvements to get stormwater out of town,” noted then-Coun. David Truckey at council’s Feb. 8 meeting. “People are not going to be worrying nearly as much after 20 minutes of rain. I think that’s long been a goal of this council and that’s a huge impact to our citizens. To me that’s a highlight in this budget. It’s a strategy that I’m glad to see come to fruition.”
No. 5 - Freedom fighter?
Pre-COVID-19, Benita Pedersen was a well-known Westlock-area DJ and community organizer involved in events like Light Up and the fly-in breakfast.
But on Feb. 11, Pedersen hosted the first in a series anti-COVID-19 rallies in Westlock that has not only sparked continued debate but led to her facing more than $10,000 in fines.
In the months that followed the initial rally, Pedersen went on to host similar events in Barrhead, Athabasca, Bonnyville and Lac La Biche and in the process received a slew of Public Health Act tickets. Pedersen, who’s not represented by a lawyer and has yet to enter a plea, faces 10 PHA 73(1) tickets for contravening an order of the Medical Officer of Health, specifically in relation to mass gatherings. Each ticket carries a specified fine of $1,000, plus a 20 per cent victim fine surcharge.
Pedersen’s case has continued to wind its way through the legal system as in Westlock Provincial Court Dec. 1, Judge Vaughn Myers set the case over to Jan. 5 as specialized prosecutions office prosecutor Lindsay Tate told him a pre-trial conference that included her office, Pedersen and Judge Charles Donald Gardner had been set for Dec. 9. The Dec. 1 appearance was the sixth adjournment of the combined case against her and ninth since her first ticket appeared on the court docket.
Pedersen’s actions have been polarizing; some praise her defiance and dissent, while others question her motives and tactics after she was seen on TV and social media heckling healthcare workers during a September rally at an Edmonton-area hospital.
Throughout she has remained steadfast, stating on an April 8 webcast dubbed The Thursday Fastball With The Crusty Canuck that she was unafraid of the authorities and said then: “If you want to put me in jail, go ahead. I’d rather not go to jail, but I’m in a sense prepared to if that’s what this is going to come to.”
Meanwhile at her October court appearance, Pedersen said her motivation for the past rallies was “love” while previously posting on social media that she has “zero intention of paying any of these (fines)” and contends that she hasn’t broken any laws.
See stories 6-10 online tomorrow, Jan. 6.
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