County of Paintearth council reviewed a housing grant application request for support from the Town of Coronation at the their regular council meeting on Sept. 4,.
The town is seeking the county’s support for an Alberta Community Partnership (ACP) grant, which would fund the Regional Housing Implementation Strategy Project.
The region is currently facing a shortage of both market and affordable rental housing, prompting an exploration of regional housing options through a 2023-24 ACP-funded infrastructure and servicing plan.
The strategy is intended to offer workable alternatives to address the housing shortage and to ensure the region is prepared for future challenges while promoting municipal viability and economic growth.
The next step would be to develop a focused housing implementation strategy, addressing site and environmental assessments, public engagement and updates to housing statistics.
Council passed a motion supporting the Town of Coronation’s 2024-25 ACP grant application. The town will manage the project and compliance requirements, with no matching contribution required from either party.
Electricity tender
The County of Paintearth, currently in year three of a four-year electricity contract with Unified Energy 8760 Ltd., discussed the potential to participate in a Rural Municipalities of Alberta (RMA) public tender for electricity this fall. The current contract, priced at 5.736 cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh), expires Dec. 31, 2025.
Unified Energy 8760 projects future electricity rates to range between 6.7 and 7.2 cents per kWh, depending on the length of the new contract.
Council noted that residential rates are currently 9.49 cents per kWh and are expected to increase by 0.96 to 1.46 cents per kWh.
“I think all of them are pretty good rates,” noted Reeve Stan Schulmeister.
Council moved to participate in the fall tender for a new four-year contract, which would run from Jan. 1, 2026 to Dec. 31, 2029.
Cheryl Bowman
Multimedia reporter
ECA Review
