Okotoks

You can see a 'parade of planets', seven planets in the night sky this Thursday, that is if you have a good telescope.

Neel Roberts, with the Royal Astronomical Society, said you don't need one if you come to Mount Royal University.

The Wolf Crescent neighbourhood in Okotoks is currently without power.

Just shortly after 10 a.m., a power outage occurred, causing 42 homes to be without power this morning.

FortisAlberta is aware of the outage, and crews have been dispatched to the area, and they are working as quickly as possible to get the power back on.

Currently, Fortis is anticipating the power will be back on around 1 p.m.

There is still some uncertainty about what caused the power to go out.

One of Alberta Premier Danielle Smith’s cabinet ministers has quit his post, saying he has broad concerns over how procurement contracts are being signed across government.

Peter Guthrie announced Tuesday he was quitting the infrastructure portfolio.

It came on the first day of the spring sitting of the legislature as Smith and her United Conservative Party government grapple with an ongoing scandal surrounding allegations of high-level arm-twisting and favouritism in multimillion-dollar health contracts.

The region has been inundated with sunshine and warm weather for several days, causing the snow and ice to melt away.

While the warmth and sunshine are welcomed after the recent cold snap we endured, the outdoor skating rinks in the area are being affected.

The Town of Diamond Valley has taken to Facebook today (Tuesday, Feb. 25), to let residents know that the outdoor rinks in town are now closed, thanks to the warm weather.

Not only that but as of February 28, the refrigeration at the Scott Seaman Sports Rink will be turned off.

More than a quarter of Canadians — 28 per cent — consider artificial intelligence systems like ChatGPT reliable sources of information, a new survey suggests.

Among generation Z Canadians — those born between 1997 and 2012 — 41 per cent say they see AI systems as reliable information sources. That’s not far off from the 49 per cent of gen Z respondents who said they trust stories on news media websites, according to the annual CanTrust Index published by Proof Strategies.

He wasn't on the stage but U.S. President Donald Trump's shadow towered over the Liberal leadership race during Monday night's French-language debate.

The candidates — former central banker Mark Carney, former finance minister Chrystia Freeland, former government House leader Karina Gould and former MP Frank Baylis — spent much of the debate talking about the threat Trump poses to Canada's economy and sovereignty.

Carney said that Trump has changed since his first term and is now more "isolationist, more aggressive."

As prairie farmers prepare for the upcoming growing season, entomologist John Gavloski with Manitoba Agriculture is urging them to keep a close eye on flea beetles, an insect that continues to pose challenges for canola growers.

“Flea beetles have been a chronic test for a long time, and I would say just bank on the fact that they're going to be there in high levels,” 

He eXplained that ideal growing conditions could minimize the need for foliar spraying, but if cooler weather lingers and delays plant development, flea beetles could become a much bigger problem.

The Friends of Foothills Schools Foundation held its first-ever Heart of Education Gala, which was also its first fundraiser of the year.

It was held on Feb. 7 at The Ranch House in Okotoks, featuring George Canyon, artist Renee Gould, and a silent auction featuring many donated items.

The foundation is dedicated to raising funds to support local school initiatives. Last year, it provided funds for three local projects, including a new theatre lighting control system for Highwood High.

I have shared with you this journey of becoming an Okotoks Oiler billet family and we are over halfway through our first season, so it feels only fitting I bring you along for the appreciation night they had for us. 

It was so fun, we arrived an hour before the team played their Friday night game versus the Vernon Vipers and were given our billets' jerseys to put on for the night. 

The Town of Okotoks will be rolling out their new garbage bins soon.

Back in November, the Town decided to switch to a bi-weekly schedule, to help save residents some money, and the Town will start swapping out the garbage bins for new, larger bins next week.

On Tuesday, March 4, crews will be out to begin their garbage cart replacement, which is expected to take about two months to complete.

Even though garbage collection will be moved to bi-weekly pickups, the new bins are 240 litres, whereas the current bins Okotokians are using are only 120 litres.