After months in limbo on its flood disaster recovery application, town council is wielding its might through the power of the written word.
Town of Westlock mayor Ralph Leriger penned a letter to Premier Rachel Notley July 7 urging to her to speed up the time when the application would be before Cabinet and approved.
“The affected town citizens and businesses are struggling to recover from the damage due to the financial burden and the extended period they have been waiting for assistance,” he wrote. “To be honest, they are becoming perplexed and frustrated over the issue. While the town has been fielding their calls, and providing what updates we can on behalf of the province, it is no longer tolerable to them.”
Since the flood happened nearly a year ago in August 2016 and the Disaster Recovery Program (DRP) application sent off in October, Leriger said the town has delayed repairing damaged infrastructure due to financial constraints, worsened by the looming cost of upgrading the water reservoir.
“This is placing us in a precarious situation if such an event occurs again,” he said. “The town has been made aware that 10 other municipalities are in (the) same situation as us and we all need this to be moved forward.”
Keith McLaughlin, chief of staff to Municipal Affairs minister Shaye Anderson, said the delay was due to a number of extreme events in what was a particularly challenging year.
“It’s important to note that the AEMA (Alberta Emergency Management Agency) has worked extensively on the recovery to the Fort McMurray wildfires and that this effort has contributed to a delay in assessing the town’s application,” McLaughlin said. “With that recovery work progressing, Alberta Emergency Management Agency has been able to focus efforts and attention to the Westlock application, and we are hoping to have a decision soon.”
He noted that the agency had been working hard to expedite the complete review of the town’s DRP applications, which take time to assess and review, adding that supporting communities affected by disasters or extreme weather events is “always a priority for our government.”
