The Last Straw

It’s no secret that since the announcement in December 2015 stating Chestermere Utilities Inc. (CUI) would be implementing a significant rate increase to its customers in 2016, that some residents have been livid. This single announcement sparked a public reaction never seen before in our community with some people now not just questioning the operations of CUI but also its governing body.
Upon learning of this rate increase, long time Chestermere resident Laurie Bold finally had enough and quickly found out she was not alone in how she felt. Initially she launched a petition that called for the dissolving of CUI. Bold says, “Every year for the past 13 years my taxes have gone up. Like everyone else I get my tax bill, I complain about it, I carry on living life and I forget about until the next year. Three years ago I was given a warning with some very pertinent information with respect to our taxes and our infrastructure. It definitely concerned me. I came home and discussed it with my husband, but I carried on living life and I forgot about it. In January, I came across an article that was written by Steve Grande with respect to the “sustainability” of Chestermere. I could not believe what I read. Out of 194 municipalities, Mr. Grande states that Chestermere is the 2nd least sustainable with a town of only 1440 residents ahead of us in the #1 position for the least sustainable municipality. I researched this information myself to see if it was true and found that it was. This very much concerned me and made me think back to what I was told three years prior. My brain really starting thinking and worrying!”
Bold then reports that in February she learned of the increase that was coming from CUI, “That was it for me!! The final straw.” She sat with her husband and told him it was time to make a serious decision; “either we move or we try to help figure out what is going wrong with Chestermere. I had finally come to the realization that I can no longer just complain and then carry on with life eventually forgetting about it”.
Bold says she put her business, her husband, her children, her grandchildren and her best friends all on hold so she could start doing some investigating and gathering of pertinent information with respect to many issues in Chestermere (sustainability, future/past business endeavors, infrastructure, taxes, CUI, annexations, and much more). “I began to find out more than I ever wanted to find out, and a new journey for me had begun as I came to the conclusion that the residents of Chestermere are unaware of the decisions being made! I started Petition #1 (Under part 7 of the Government Act) to Council asking them to Dissolve Chestermere Utilities Incorporated and reinstate the management of the utility back to the of City of Chestermere. Then approximately 1 week later after hearing concerns of some of the residents I decided to initiate a 2nd Petition (Under Part 14 (Sec 572) of the Municipal Government Act) to the Minister of Municipal Affairs to conduct an inquiry into the affairs (Council & Administration) of the City of Chestermere”.
With the launching of these two petitions, Bold quickly approached local businesses and put out a call on social media for those willing to collect signatures. “I have 3 businesses and 25 Signature Collectors”, said Bold.
The first petition, to dissolve CUI, has been submitted to City of Chestermere CAO, Dr. Randy Patrick on February 18th, 2016. “I collected well over 2000 signatures for Petition #1 however, I could not submit some of them as the signature collectors did not bring me their signed affidavits and we can only guess why that happened. But, I delivered 1976 signatures which is over the 10% required. All of these signatures were collected in only 3 weeks. A petition can be open for 2 months so the fact that 1976 signatures were collected so quickly shows the residents are upset. The petition was submitted on Feb 18 before the “special” meeting for one reason only; to show the council how upset residents are and to hopefully have them stop and think about it prior to voting on the increases. But that did not happen. The signatures could have been far greater if the full two months were used”, explained Bold.
The 2nd petition will continue to collect signatures over the next few weeks and Bold says, “I currently have 2,500 signatures in my possession for the 2nd Petition. I need to collect another 1,500 by March 21st and we will do it. I have found the majority of residents that I have approached want to sign; very few will not”.
Given the subject of the second petition, it will need to be delivered to the Minister of Municipal Affairs. Shannon Greer, Press Secretary with Municipal Affairs and Service Alberta explained, “Electors may petition the Minister of Municipal Affairs, for an inquiry into the operations of a municipality or actions of council. A handbook for petitioners is available on the Municipal Affairs website and explains the petition process. The specific number of petitioners varies in relation to the purpose and nature of the petition”.
In a meeting with some of those that have been out collecting signatures, Bold expressed her thanks for their efforts and hard work, but especially to, what Bold calls, her #1 Signature Collector Charles Malley who has collected to date 800 signatures for her.
If you’re interested in joining the group as a signature collector or wanting to sign the petition, you can contact Laurie Bold lauriebold@shaw.ca