Okotoks

Dry conditions are expected to continue in the Foothills region for the week.  

In April, the Okotoks area saw about 21.2 mm of precipitation, compared to the 33.2 mm that is normal for this time of year.  

“It has been a little bit drier and now we're starting to get into what are considered our wetter months as we head into our summer season,” said Christy Climenhaga, Scientist with Environment and Climate Change Canada.  

Prime Minister Mark Carney and U.S. President Donald Trump met Tuesday in Washington for their first face-to-face discussion of U.S.-Canada relations and Trump's ongoing trade war.

Here are some highlights from the meeting, which Carney described as both "wide-ranging" and "constructive."

Carney says Canadians will 'never' put a price tag on sovereignty

After months of listening to Trump talk about annexing Canada, Carney told the president in the Oval Office that Canada will "never" be for sale.

Sunday, May 4, was International Firefighters' Day, and an Okotoks business made the most of it with a fundraiser event.

Firehouse Subs hosted a touch-the-truck event, where people were invited to meet members of Okotoks Fire & Rescue, see their equipment up close and donate to the Firehouse Subs Public Safety Foundation

"It was great that Okotoks Fire came out. They were really generous with their time and equipment," said district manager Cam Standish. "They let the families explore the truck, touch equipment, sit in the truck, that kind of awesome stuff."

Canada's Alert Ready Emergency Alert System is being tested on Wednesday, May 6, across the country, except for Quebec.

An alert tone and message will be sent out across radio, television, and smartphones.

The system is used in a wide variety of emergencies, including AMBER alerts, tornadoes, and imminent threats to public safety.

In Alberta, the alert will go out at 1:55 p.m.

The Town of High River will also carry out a siren test at the same time.

The Foothills School Division (FSD) is looking at a potential huge budget shortfall for the next school year.

FSD Superintendent Chris Fuzessy said they're still hoping for more, but it's not looking good.

"We have not yet received our final funding profile from the government. We had an initial one, and we've looked through that, and overall, if you factor increase in costs and a decrease in funding, we're looking at between two and four million dollars less in funding year-to-year from this year to the next school year."

The Town of Okotoks is advising residents of additional parking bans this week while crews continue the spring cleanup.  

The bans are in effect between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m.  

During that timeframe, vehicles and obstructions must be removed from the roadways.  

The parking bans include:  

Wednesday, May 7  

Abbey Norek of Gerald is this year's Agriculture Student Scholarship grand-prize $6,000 winner.

Norek's winning video highlighted an urban-rural disconnect when it comes to agriculture. 

She proposed education and advocacy as key solutions to this issue. 

In her video presentation, she talked about her experience building a school garden using recycled materials, leading outreach programs on her family farm, and lobbying for agriculture electives in her school division.  

Southern Alberta farmer has long-standing issues with supply-management system for smaller egg producers like himself.

A southern Alberta egg producer who had been jailed for missing a court date for violating the provincial laws governing egg production has passed a premises inspection by Egg Farmers of Alberta.

Henk Van Essen said an inspector only spent a few minutes inside his operation before coming back out and telling him he was in full compliance.

“They were so sure they were going to find thousands of chickens in this barn,” Van Essen said.

Seeding is kicking off across the province. And whether you're already putting in fertilizer, or still fine-tuning your plan, it’s important to make informed decisions when it comes to your inputs for the season ahead.

New products are everywhere on the market and choosing the right ones can determine profitability and long-term success for your farm. I’m going to talk about one group of products that gets a lot of attention -- micronutrient fertilizers.

Okotokians gathered at the Olde Towne Plaza on Monday (May 5) evening for a candlelight vigil in tribute to the victims of the tragedy at the Vancouver Filipino Lapu-Lapu Day Festival.

The April 26 incident claimed the lives of 11 people and injured more than 20 others. Vigils and tributes have been held across the country in the days since.

Those attending the Okotoks vigil were provided with candles, which were lit from a single flame passed hand to hand through the crowd.