Sir Elton John - In Grande Prairie

Now how's THIS for entertainment at the Crystal Centre?

CRYSTAL CENTRE

Thursday, April 26^th

GRANDE PRAIRIE, AB – Elton John will perform solo at Crystal Centre on Thursday, April 26^th at 8PM performing his “Greatest Hits Live” concert, featuring number one chart hits and classic album tracks from throughout his incredible five-decade career. This will be Elton’s first ever appearance in Grande Prairie.

The public on-sale will begin Friday, February 10^th at 10 AM.

One of the most successful live acts on the road today, Elton puts on the kind of concert you will never forget: the entire audience standing, dancing and singing along with much-loved classic songs such as “Your Song”, “Rocket Man”, “Bennie and the Jets”, “Philadelphia Freedom”, “Crocodile Rock”, “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me”, and many more.

"It's a thrill to be able to welcome a star of Sir Elton John's stature to Grande Prairie. His legendary performances have entertained millions worldwide and seeing him live at the Crystal Centre is truly a once in a lifetime opportunity," said Grande Prairie Mayor, Bill Given.

The monumental career of international singer/songwriter and performer Elton John spans five decades. He is one of the top-selling solo artists of all time, with 35 gold and 25 platinum albums, 29 consecutive Top 40 hits, and he has sold more than 250 million records worldwide. John holds the record for the biggest selling single of all time, “Candle in the Wind ’97,” which sold over 33 million copies. Since his career began in 1969 he has played over 3,000 concerts worldwide.

TICKETS ON SALE FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 10th, 10AM

                                                                                           

Tickets are $91.50, $151.50 and will be available online at crystalcentre.com, at the Crystal Centre box office or charge-by-phone at (780) 538-0387.

A service charge is added to each ticket. There is an 8 ticket limit per customer. 

Taxi Bylaw - Missing the Point

At tonight's council meeting one of the agenda items will be the third and final reading of the proposed changes to the sections of the city's business licence bylaw that deal with regulations around taxis. The discussion about the changes has been covered in the media many times - and most of the time the media focus in on the proposed "cap" on the number of taxis that the city would licence to operate.

As of right now the "cap" has been stripped out of the bylaw. That happened at our last council meeting when a number of council members objected to it and a motion was made to pass the bylaw with out that section. If the bylaw passes "as is" tonight then we will have no cap on the number of taxi licences that the city will issue.

Much of the attention during the debate has been on how this is "government interfering with the free market". Unfortunately I think that point of view fails to take into account why the cap was proposed in the first place - it provides us a lever which we can use to encourage the taxi industry to provide better service ... specifically to people with mobility issues.

The bylaw stated that we would limit the number of taxi licenses to 173 and review that number every two years to see if it needed to be adjusted. The bylaw also made allowances for drivers who operated in 2010 but missed the registration deadline due to personal circumstances - they were allowed to reregister and that brought the number of registered taxis to about 206... already well above the "cap".

(Of note is that Red Deer also has a limit on the number of taxis: 1 per 750 people ... or about 110 total based on the most current population of 82,772. If our cap worked on the same ratio of 1/750 our cap would have been 67 units. The Red Deer Taxi Bylaw)

The thing about "The Cap" is that it does not prevent new taxis from coming on the the road. Anyone could licence a new taxis - IF it was either wheelchair accessible OR a hybrid.

I will be the first to admit that there is no question that this would be an example of government regulating of private enterprise. But the truth is that we already regulate the taxi industry in many ways and I feel this is a reasonable way for us to encourage the industry to begin providing service to a good portion of our population who have very few options for transportation. I also think it's kind of like saying we welcome new businesses BUT you have to provide a handicap stall in your parking lot - not an unreasonable request.

The funny thing is that much of the taxi industry is in SUPPORT of the cap.

The cap would provide a financial incentive for private business to invest in bringing wheelchair accessible taxis to the city. Basically we are saying that we have enough old police cars out on the streets and that if you want to bring a new unit to the city to do business it should be wheelchair accessible (or a hybrid).

So tonight council will debate the third and final reading of the taxi bylaw... without the cap. If no changes are made and the bylaw is passed as is we will loose that lever, that incentive, that the cap provided to encourage taxi operators to bring wheelchair accessible taxis to the city.

It makes me think of how we managed to get the last accessible taxi on the street (pics)- by giving a $20,000 grant to do it. If we had had a cap in place at the time maybe the city wouldn't have had to do that. I think it's telling that there have been no new accessible taxis since the city last contributed money to make it happen ... unless there's some kind of financial incentive then industry won't do it.

Welcome to 2012

We are now a week in to 2012 and so far it doesn't seem like the end of the world. Unseasonably warm, yes. But end-of-the-world hot ... I don't think so.

2011 was a busy year; for me personally, in the region and here at city hall. In fact I was so busy that my last post was back in October which is pretty sad. So like everyone else I guess I'd better have a New Year's Resolution - I'm going to set a goal of one post every week. Let's see how it goes.

Looking back at 2011 there were a number of projects started, completed and celebrated. I believe the most significant  was the development of Council's new Strategic Plan. The plan sets out Council's values, priorities and goals for the balance of the term.

Some of the most important goals are aimed directly at reducing the need for future property tax increases by addressing the financial foundation and framework the city operates within. These goals are:

• Develop a fiscal sustainability model
• Prepare a post-annexation plan
• Prepare a strategy to encourage industrial land development

The exercise of working through the Strategic Plan ensured that each council member and administration had a chance to develop a shared understanding of what our collective priorities were. This collective focus  is what enabled us to pass a 3 year budget that provides the lowest tax increases in a decade while still reinvesting in the infrastructure and services that our community needs.

In 2011 we did the big stuff. We set out our long term strategic goals and developed the budget that will provide the financial resources to work towards them over the next 3 years.

So what does that leave for 2012? That'll have to be next week's post...

Economic Development Partners with ACFA to Recruit

Did you know that Grande Prairie has the 3rd largest French Association in all of Alberta? Not bad for being the 7th largest city in the province right? The size of our Francophone community is a real asset for our city as it leads to some very important partnerships like the one below. 


The City's Economic Development Officer will be traveling with ACFA representatives to Brussels and Paris in an effort to highlight the job opportunities available in our region.


It goes to show that investments to support and partner with our cultural communities make us an attractive place to live - and if we're an attractive place to live then people will consider moving here when they might not otherwise. 


With the labour market tightening up again Grande Prairie will benefit from the doors our cultural communities can open for us. 


All the details are below in the City media release. 

Recruitment Opportunity for Grande Prairie Employers
Media Release
October 24, 2011


The City of Grande Prairie is representing the region at the Destination Canada job fairs in Paris, France and Brussels, Belgium in partnership with the L'Association Canadienne-Française de l'Alberta (ACFA).

“There is a skilled worker shortage developing within our region,” says Brian Glavin, Economic Development Officer. “The Destination Canada event is an excellent opportunity for our community as the applicants have been pre-screened to be fluent in English as well as being skilled workers.” The events, which run from November 15th-19th, will have between 3,500 and 4,000 job seekers.

“The job fair provides employers with access to a pool of highly qualified workers looking to relocate to Canada,” says Glavin.

The job seekers span a wide range of specialties, from engineers and mechanics to chefs and surgeons. Companies looking to hire skilled employees can contact the Economic Development department for more details or sign up directly on the Destination Canada website.

Media enquiries may be directed to:

Brian Glavin
Economic Development Officer
City of Grande Prairie
780.538.0475

Michelle Margarit
Director
ACFA - Grande Prairie
780.532.6335

New Traffic Lights Being Installed

View Traffic List Installations in a larger map
The pins above mark the locations of the new lights.

Traffic Signal Construction Projects Begin

Installation of traffic lights will commence today in three separate locations.

Crews will at begin at the 104 Ave. and 92 St. intersection, continue to the 116 Ave. and 96 St. intersection and finish at Kateri Drive where a pedestrian crossing will be erected near Derek Taylor School.

Most of the work will be carried-out away from the road, but some delays are expected when the signal poles and overhead light arms are craned into place.

Patience is appreciated as the addition of traffic signals to these busy intersections will significantly improve safety.

Media enquiries may be directed to:
Roger Hodgson
Project Engineer
780.513.5229
rhodgson@cityofgp.com

Ice Delay Possible at Dave Barr Arena

Installation of ice at the newly renovated Dave Barr Community Centre may be delayed until October 27, a few weeks beyond the originally scheduled Oct. 11 date. 

Improvements to the rink at the Dave Barr Community Centre are taking longer than expected. A $1.4-million project has included a new condenser, boards and glass, and revamping of the heating and ventilation system. Fire sprinklers and other infrastructure needs were also addressed.

Dave Barr management is working with Coca-Cola Centre and Crystal Centre personnel to accommodate ice time demands. User groups have been made aware of the projected delay.

The delay is connected with the manufacture and installation of the board and glass system. 

Once these are in place, staff will work around the clock, with help from the City’s other two arenas, to ensure the ice surface is in as quickly as possible.

“We are working to tighten-up the time frame of when user groups can get onto the ice,” says Garry Roth, Community Services Director. “Running extra shifts will minimize the down-time.”

Help Name The New Fire Hall!

The City of Grande Prairie is encouraging the public to take part in a process to help name the Third Fire Station.

This is the first time residents have been invited to participate in the naming of a City fire facility.

The two existing stations bear the names of historical community figures. The North Hall is named after William Salmond – an area pioneer – and the South Hall recognizes Pete Eagar – the first full-time Fire Chief of the Grande Prairie Fire Department.

“This is an opportunity to involve citizens in a positive, community-building experience,” says Dan Lemieux, Fire Chief. “We want to celebrate the contributions of our founders.”

Residents can send an e-mail to thirdfirehall@cityofgp.com with a nominee and a rationale of 100 words or less explaining why the Third Fire Station should be named after that person. 

Proposals can also be mailed to Rick Adair at P.O. Bag 4000, Grande Prairie, AB, T8V 6V3.

A safety related prize will be awarded for the winning submission!

“The Station doesn’t necessarily have to be named after a fire-related figure,” says Rick Adair, Project Manager of the Third Fire Station. “The Grande Prairie Fire Department appreciates the role all our community builders played in shaping the city.”

The deadline for nominees is September 15. City Council will have final approval of the Third Fire Station name.

The new facility, located at 97 Avenue and 118 Street, will open in Spring 2012.