Okotoks

Highwood High grade 12 students are all set to graduate on Thursday.

Starting in front of the Museum of the Highwood at 10 a.m., they assemble in alphabetical order for group photos.

Then the grads march down 4th Ave SW to George Lane Memorial Park. 

You can expect traffic delays along 4th Avenue and Macleod Trail as the students make their way.

At about 11 a.m., the ceremony is expected to start at the gazebo in George Lane Park.

Everyone is welcome, but with only 550 chairs available, family members are encouraged to bring their own lawn chairs.

Construction will cause more road closures in Okotoks.

North Railway Street will be closed from Poplar Ave to the east edge of Alberta Ave and Lineham Ave will be closed from North Railway St to South Railway St.

Not only that, but Pisttoo Park and Triangle Park will also be closed for improvements.

As part of the work being completed, crews will be installing new stormwater drainage systems, replacing sanitary sewer mains and potable water lines, completing roadway resurfacing, installing new sidewalks and landscaping.

A passenger rail system is being planned for the province.

As part of the rail system, it will connect Fort McMurray and Grand Prairie to Edmonton, as well as Edmonton to the Calgary area, including Okotoks, and people are still able to be involved in the process.

The province is currently in the process of developing a Passenger Rail Master Plan, which had open houses happening in Calgary, Canmore, Red Deer, and Edmonton, as well as virtual sessions and an online survey where people were able to provide input on the rail line.

The results of the 2025 Community Priorities Survey are in, and they show continued satisfaction with life in Okotoks.

At the Town Council meeting on Monday (June 23), Council approved the results from the survey, which highlighted the continued community satisfaction with life in town, as well as a shared commitment to thoughtful planning for future growth.

According to the Town, this survey marks a key milestone in gathering input from residents to shape the future direction of the Town.

The 5 km Bubble Run is coming back to High River.

The family-friendly fun run is coming back to Sunshine and Emerson Lakes in the southeast part of town.

It's a fun run or walk through four different bubble bogs along the route. They also have a DJ playing music.

Early bird pricing is in effect until this Friday, June 26, but goes up on Saturday, June 28.

It's $17.08 for adults right now, but the price jumps up to $22.35 from June 28 to July 27, then it jumps up to $27.63 from July 28 to Aug. 8. It's $30 at the gate on registration day.

Whether Alberta should withhold social services from immigrants is among the issues Alberta Premier Danielle Smith is tabling for debate this summer when she travels the province to consult citizens on potential referendum questions.

The tour is part of what Smith has dubbed the "Alberta Next" panel. At a news conference Tuesday, she announced details of its work and named its 15 members.

At the same time, six online surveys were launched on the panel's website, which are to help inform what questions the government puts to a referendum next year.

May inflation figures showed marginal improvements in some of the Bank of Canada's closely watched price figures — a step in the right direction, some economists say, but likely not enough to convince the central bank to cut interest rates.

The annual pace of inflation held steady at 1.7 per cent last month as cooling shelter costs helped tame price pressures, Statistics Canada said Tuesday.

The Liberal government will table a bill this fall introducing stricter bail conditions and sentencing for some crimes, particularly those involving organized crime, human trafficking, home invasion and car theft, Justice Minister Sean Fraser said in an interview.

"It's perhaps obvious, given the tenor around the criminal justice system, that reforms are in order," Fraser told The Canadian Press.

A collision caused traffic delays east of Okotoks on Tuesday, June 24.

It happened on Highway 7 E on the south end of town, with two vehicles involved.

The incident was cleared soon after.

Premier Danielle Smith will appear alongside Highwood MLA RJ Sigurdson at a town hall event in Okotoks in early July.

Described as a "community engagement" event, the town hall is being hosted at the Viking Rentals Centre on July 2.

Doors open at 4:30 p.m., and the event goes from 5 to 6:30 p.m.

Smith recently appeared at similar events in Airdrie, High Prairie, and Fort Macleod.