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Community News
Vegreville CAO Receives 10 Year Service Pin
Michelle Pinon - News Advertiser
Vegreville Mayor Tim MacPhee was very pleased to present Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) Sandra Ling with her 10 year service pin on behalf of the Canadian Association of Municipal Administrators (CAMA) at the May 12 council meeting.
MacPhee add that it was so nice for Ling to be recognized. “She has worked her way through our organization to the CAO position. Her dedication and commitment to the Town of Vegreville, all the years of her hard work and all the courses she had to take on her own time to get to the position. She’s in now. We’re all very proud of her.”
CAMA President remarked in his letter to Mayor MacPhee that, “This year, it is our privilege to acknowledge the commitment of your Chief Administrative Officer Sandra Ling for her remarkable ten years of service in municipal government management roles. Sandra’s dedication to her role has undoubtedly contributed to the advancement of your municipality, and we are pleased to recognize her achievements.”
Ling commented on the award by stating, "I am honoured to have had the opportunity to contribute to our vibrant community through ten years of growth, leadership, and meaningful impact. My sincere thanks to Council, staff, and the Canadian Association of Municipal Administrators for this special recognition. I look forward to continuing to serve as CAO for the Town of Vegreville with dedication and enthusiasm."
Local to Global Forum Focuses on Economic Corridors
Michelle Pinon - News Advertiser
Local to Global Forum brings together elected officials, ministers of government, and economic development officers representing communities in eastern rural Alberta every year.
This year’s forum was held in Medicine Hat with more than 70 of those stakeholders together for a three-day conference. The event is hosted annually by the Northeast Alberta Information HUB (Alberta HUB), Battle River Alliance Economic Development (BRAED), and Palliser Economic Partnership (PEP) through the Eastern Alberta Trade Corridor (EATC) initiative.
Alberta HUB Executive Director Bob Bezpalko stated that the Government of Alberta is interested in formalizing these corridors.” Within the trade corridor, Bezpalko said Highways 36 and 41 are top priorities.
Bezpalko pointed out that, “The main goal of the Local to Global Forum was to educate our municipalities, First Nations and Metis settlements about the work the EATC is doing to highlight investment opportunities along this Corridor as well as focus on the Wild Horse Pass, port of entry.” He noted that, “Alberta only has one24 hour port of entry and that is Coutts/Sweetgrass.”
Alberta HUB Chair Gerald Aalbers said, “The EATC provides an excellent avenue for the Northeast Alberta Information HUB to work collaboratively with our neighboring Rural Economic Development Alliance’s to help bring awareness and investment to our region.
This investment in infrastructure is critical to help move our commodities, finished goods and people both North and South as well as East and West. We continue to work with the Province of Alberta to help grow the provincial economy and our local economies to support our members and communities.”
Vegreville Mayor Tim MacPhee and Jamieson Brown, Manager of Community Engagement and Economic Development, were two of 70 attendees at the conference. MacPhee stated that, “It was a very informative conference. Some of the keynote speakers were the Minister of Agriculture & Irrigation RJ Sigurdson, and Minister of Affordability & Utilities Nathan Neudorf.
“There was lots of conversation on electrical needs in the future of our province. Some of the challenges that we are seeing in the northeast when it comes to distribution fees. We also talked about value-added jobs in the agricultural industry, and how Vegreville is very well placed with our new industrial park and the industries that we are negotiating with today. My focus has always been to make sure the Government of Alberta knows how actively Vegreville is trying to recruit these new industries to our area.
Alberta HUB was recognized by the Minister’s and MLA‘s in attendance as one of the hardest working REDA’s in the province.”
This investment in infrastructure is critical to help move our commodities, finished goods and people both North and South as well as East and West. We continue to work with the Province of Alberta to help grow the provincial economy and our local economies to support our members and communities.”
