Okotoks

Multi-species cover crops are proving to be a valuable tool in improving soil health and boosting farm productivity, according to ongoing research led by Dr. Bharat Shrestha at Beaverlodge Research Farm. Dr. Shrestha, the biology study lead in soil health and fertility development, is part of a collaborative project under the Peace River Living Lab initiative, funded by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada's Agricultural Climate Solutions - Living Lab program.

Thousands of smile cookies are up for grabs this week at Tim Hortons locations across Canada.

The week-long annual fundraiser supports local charities, and for the third consecutive year, funds raised are going to the High River District Health Care Foundation.

The owner of the two Tim Horton locations in High River, Kevin Generoux, is thrilled to be giving back to such an important charity.

"It's that special time of the year where all week long we're selling smile cookies for $2 each to support our local charity."

As part of the 2025 Good Works Project, the École Good Shepherd School Grade 2 class collected 425 lbs of food for the Okotoks Food Bank.  

The food drive, between March 17 and April 17, brought in an assortment of needed items, such as canned goods, cereal, and snack food.   

The Town of Okotoks is seeking input from residents on the design of a new accessible and inclusive playground at Howard Park.   

Local parents and caregivers are invited to attend an interactive design workshop on May 6 from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Okotoks Operations Centre to learn more about the project and provide their feedback.  

The Town of Diamond Valley is advising residents to limit their water use on April 29.  

Crews will be completing repairs and maintenance at the Main Lift Station in the Turner Valley community between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m.  

To ensure the repairs are completed efficiently and safely, all Turner Valley residents and businesses are asked to limit their water use for the day. 

Canadians cast their votes today (April 28) in the 2025 federal election.

Polling stations are open from 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. in Alberta, and we'll update this page with live results as they come in.

Stay tuned for the latest numbers as ballots are counted.

The Town of Okotoks has received recognition for financial reporting for the 2023 Annual Report.  

The town recently won the Canadian Award for Financial Reporting (CAnFR) from the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) of the United States and Canada for the fifth year.  

Southern Alberta irrigators enter the growing season with full reservoirs following the much drier conditions of previous years.

Irrigation reservoirs in southern Alberta are looking a lot better than they have in recent years.

“We are going into the year with full reservoirs, which is nice, especially since the snowpack in the mountains is still in that lower quartile,” said Alex Ostrop, chair of the Alberta Irrigation Districts Association (AIDA) and board member of the St. Mary River Irrigation District (SMRID).

The federal government, provinces, and territories have made a key change to AgriStability that will benefit producers.

Given the pressures and uncertainty facing the agricultural sector, they have agreed to extend the 2025 AgriStability enrolment deadline from April 30th to July 31st.

The extension gives producers more time to evaluate their needs and the potential impact to their farming operation for production losses, increased costs, and changing market conditions. 

This is the second change to the program as farmers deal with tariff issues.

After a short, intense and heated election campaign of just 35 days, Canadians go to the polls today to elect a new federal government.

Liberal Leader Mark Carney, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre and NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh spent weeks pitching their cases to voters.

Carney, the former central banker and political neophyte, presented himself as a safe pair of hands for a country threatened by U.S. President Donald Trump, while Poilievre focused on addressing crime and the high cost of living and Singh pushed to protect social programs he argued are under threat.