WESTLOCK – An agreement between Westlock County and the Summer Village of Larkspur for services has been updated to reflecting rising costs.
The village and county entered into an Intermunicipal Collaboration Framework (ICF) agreement in May 2020 with four sub-agreements for solid waste and recycling services, winter road maintenance, fire protection, and emergency management.
Westlock County Chief Administrative Officer Tony Kulbisky, in his report to council on Sept. 10, said that administration had reviewed the agreement and discussed proposed amendments with the village, which they approved.
The changes included changing the review process to every four years instead of five and meeting every two years to discuss issues and opportunities.
The wording of the fire services agreement was tweaked to say “may include” because the way it was worded previously the agreement could have been interpreted as meaning all the services would be included.
The revised agreement also saw cost increases.
The fee for each registered parcel of land in larkspur including reserve/park land, was increased to $75 from $50.
Other increases in fire services fees included false or unfounded alerts including security systems to $210 from $150 per call, which are the same rates as Alberta Transportation.
Fire service engine or tender apparatus excluding ATVs dispatched to an incident was increased to $720 per hour from $600, and align with Alberta Transportation rates. An ATV dispatched will now cost $100 and a UTV will cost. In addition, the agreement will make a distinction between UTV and ATV.
A medical first response call has gone up to $400 from $300 to be consistent with the county’s fire bylaw.
Westlock County council approved the revisions of the ICF and directed the Reeve and CAO to sign the revised agreements with the Summer Village of Larkspur.
