HighRiver

Claresholm Town Council passed the 2025 Property Tax Rate Bylaw, during the May 12 regular meeting.  

Property taxes are a primary source of revenue to support municipal operations and services.   

According to the report to council, there are reductions to the majority of tax rates, however, ratepayers can expect an increase on their tax notices, due to an increase in overall funding for tax support and requisitions.

As farmers continue their seeding operations, the latest crop report brings a mix of optimism and caution. 

Crop Extension Specialist Tyce Masich says at this point 72 per cent of the provincial crop is now planted; that's an increase of 23 per cent from last week. 

He notes it's a smaller increase than the week before, largely due to rain delays in parts of the south and east regions of the province. 

The Lethbridge Police are asking for assistance in locating a wanted man.

37-year-old Cole Randall Martin is wanted on outstanding warrants for aggravated assault, assault with a weapon, housebreak commit robbery, robbery with a firearm, disguised with intent, and possession of a dangerous weapon.

The Lethbridge Police took to Facebook on May 16 to inform the public about Martin after his failure to attend court last week.

Martin may be in the Calgary area.

The Little Britches Rodeo delighted both young and old last Friday and Saturday at the High River Ag grounds.

Liz Ellwood, events coordinator and office manager with the High River Ag Society, was thrilled with how well it went.

"It was fantastic as ever. The support of the community means the absolute world to us with some new sponsors as well and plenty of competitors. 240 children came through as competitors in all of the events, which is just great."

We have a local winner in the province's 'Split the Pot' lottery.

Gerry Gendron of High River recently picked up a $1000 cheque from Cathy Couey with the High River District Health Care Foundation.

The 'Split the Pot' lottery supports health care facilities across the province, including the High River Regional Hospital. They just recently moved to monthly prizes.

The Town of Okotoks is upgrading their water mains in a couple neighbourhoods, and the work has been extended.

The water main upgrading and infrastructure replacement work began the week of April 28 in the Suntree and Tower Hill neighbourhoods in Okotoks, which is helping to make the Town's water system more reliable, as well as supporting nearby neighbourhoods, such as Wedderburn and D'Arcy, and future development.

Due to the work, the temporary road closures on Waldron Avenue between Robinson Drive and Visser Way have been extended until May 25.

Marching bands, horses, bouncy castles, and more will take over Diamond Valley on Saturday, June 7.

The 57th Diamond Valley Parade and Festival will greet thousands of spectators in the morning, and then the festivities continue on the Turner Valley side of town in the afternoon.

Get there early if you want to find parking and take in the pancake breakfast fundraiser at 8:30 a.m. put on by students at Oilfields High.

The union representing about 55,000 Canada Post employees said the latest offers from the postal service "fall short" with hours to go until a looming strike deadline.

Canada Post meanwhile said Thursday it's already seeing mail volumes decline ahead of another possible labour disruption and is pushing for an urgent resolution.

Spokesperson Lisa Liu said Canada Post hasn't yet received a response from the union about its proposals issued a day earlier.

The postal service is ready to resume bargaining "as soon as possible" with a mediator at the table, she said.

Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre announced the official opposition shadow cabinet on Tuesday, May 21.

Many MPs retained their roles from previous shadow cabinets, including Foothills MP John Barlow, who was reappointed as Shadow Minister for Agriculture, Agri-Food and Food Security.

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has named 73 MPs to his party's leadership team and critic roles ahead of next week's return to the House of Commons.

He has named 48 Conservative members of Parliament to critic roles, while another 14 will become associate critics.

Most of them are returning MPs, though some have been shuffled to new positions left by people who were not re-elected on April 28.