Red Deer 1913 — 2013 Create Celebrate Commemorate
ICE BREAKERS Red Deer downs Kootenay 6-4 in WHL action B4
FINDING FINLEY Zach Braff enjoyed channeling his inner monkey for ‘Oz the Great and Powerful’ C6
CENTRAL ALBERTA’S DAILY NEWSPAPER
BREAKING NEWS ONLINE AT WWW.REDDEERADVOCATE.COM
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 6, 2013
TOUR OF ALBERTA
Gearing up for thrills RED DEER CHOSEN TO HOST STAGE 2 FINISH ON SEPT. 5 BY CRYSTAL RHYNO ADVOCATE STAFF Some of the best in the cycling world will race to Red Deer as part of the inaugural Tour of Alberta Pro Cycling Event in September. The host communities for Alberta’s first international professional cycling event were revealed in Red Deer on Tuesday. The five-stage race begins on Sept. 3 in Edmonton and wraps up on Sept. 8 in Calgary. Red Deer will host the Stage 2 finish on Sept. 5, when cyclists will ride in from Devon, 185 kilometres north of Red Deer. The Red Deer route will be finalized in the next few days. The route will be announced officially in April. Mayor Morris Flewwelling said the city is absolutely delighted that Red Deer was chosen as one of the stops on the tour. “As an active bike community, we have just initiated a bike lane pilot,” Flewwelling said at the press conference. “We are in the thrones of adapting our community to commuter cycling. We have always been in recreation cycling. Now we’re in commuter cycling. This couldn’t come at a better time. Another part that makes it absolutely perfect for us is that this is the year we are celebrating our 100th anniversary as a city . . . We will always be able to remember the first annual Tour of Alberta happened in our centennial year.”
Contributed Graphic
The host communities for Alberta’s first international professional cycling event were revealed in Red Deer on Tuesday. The five-stage race begins on Sept. 3 in Edmonton and wraps up on Sept. 8 in Calgary.
Please see TOUR on Page A2
Like it or lump it: province Potholes piling reneges on sewer funding up across city BY PAUL COWLEY ADVOCATE STAFF The province is being accused of reneging on its promise to fund 90 per cent of a yet-completed regional sewage line. Dennis Cooper, chairman of the South Red Deer Regional Wastewater Commission, said Alberta Transportation recently offered the commission a maximum of $10 million towards completion of the project, which is about three-quarters done. But that falls about $10 million short of what is needed and amounts to the province’s share slipping to about 80 per cent of the cost of the Olds-to-Red Deer sewer line.
PLEASE RECYCLE
Cooper said the project was begun eight years ago under Alberta’s Water For Life Strategy, which promised 90 per cent provincial funding. “It’s disappointing because of the fact you have a plan, this is what’s going to happen, then all of a sudden (the province says), ‘Nope, we’re changing our minds.’ “I feel at this present time it’s unfair for the province to download on municipalities in this manner.” In a special meeting last week, the commission voted to reject the $10-million offer and request a meeting with Transportation Minister Ric McIver to work out alternatives.
Please see SEWER on Page A2
WEATHER
INDEX
Fog patches. High -5. Low -12.
Four sections Alberta . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A3 Business. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B1-B3 Canada . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A5 Classified . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . D1-D4 Comics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . C4 Entertainment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . C6 Sports. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B4-B6
FORECAST ON A2
BY MYLES FISH ADVOCATE STAFF As ubiquitous as snow to the Prairie winter, the spring that follows brings forth that great menace to cars, trucks, and the sanity of drivers — potholes. And though spring has not yet officially sprung, potholes are out in full force on the streets of Red Deer. Freeze-thaw cycles lead to pothole creation, as moisture enters pavement cracks, then freezes and expands, putting pressure on the cracks and causing the surrounding asphalt to break away. Vehicle traffic over a small pothole can eventually create a behemoth, as the edges gradually break off.
Please see POTHOLES on Page A2
CANADA
WORLD
PIPELINE PITCH GOES INTO OVERDRIVE
REACTIONS MIXED TO CHAVEZ’S DEATH
Less than a week after the U.S. State Department all but dismissed the climate concerns dogging TransCanada’s Keystone XL pipeline, two high-profile Canadian politicians headed stateside to push once again for presidential approval of the project. A5
Reactions to the death of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez were as mixed, polemical and outsized as the leader was in life. C3
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