By Marcia Love.
A fire hydrant on Marsh Street that has been leaking for several months will be replaced.
The hydrant has been seeping water for four to five months as the town awaited a part to arrive from Newfoundland to fix it. The part hasn’t arrived.
“That hydrant has leaked tens of thousands of gallons of water and I think it’s a gross misconduct to let it sit that long,” said Mayor Barry Rudd at the town council meeting July 13. “It’s time we get it fixed.”
A new fire hydrant will replace the leaking one.
Council accepted a hay tender from Glenn Brost to cut and bale the grass in areas around town which are too large for the town to mow.
A request from Koncrete Construction to buy topsoil from the town was denied, as council said the town may need the topsoil for use in parks and other areas.
The Creek Classics Car Club was granted permission to close a portion of Jasper Street for a car show on Aug. 21. The street will be closed in front of the Jasper Centre.
A request to waive the $250 hospital levy on a lot on the east side of town was awarded to Howard Packard and Alden Shelstad.
“It never has and probably never will be a residence,” said assistant town administrator Deb Machay.
Council granted the Maple Creek Gymnastics Club permission to use the Armoury.
The group will use the Armoury on a weekly basis for $25 per session and will also store their equipment there. A request was made to place anchor holes in the floor for gymnastic bars, but was denied due to the value of the floor.
A time for the gymnastics club to use the Armoury has not been decided.
Despite the flood, Duncan Whittick, manager of community development and recreation, said the town is still planning to take part in the Communities in Bloom program.
“We’ve had some setbacks, but I think this is a good chance to show that despite what happened, we can still show off our community,” he said.
Communities in Bloom judges will be in Maple Creek on Aug. 4 to critique the town on it’s visual appeal. Whittick said the judges have taken into account the town’s flood-recovery situation.
“There’s going to be a lot of places (the judges) want to see that don’t look wonderful,” he explained. “The landfill is one of the first places they ask to see... but they understand that we had a disaster.”
Council approved an amendment to the traffic bylaw to allow a speed limit to be posted by Centennial Park.
A speed limit of 30 kilometres per hour will be posted on Claustre Avenue in front of the park area.