The Tin Cup Restaurant & Patio at the St. Paul Golf Course will once again be operated by Doug Quan.
"We discussed new requirements and expectations. It was a positive meeting," said Town of St. Paul CAO Kim Heyman in her report at the Nov. 26 council meeting, when speaking about her meeting with the lease holder of the restaurant.
Quan confirmed with the Journal that he has signed a two-year lease with the Town of St. Paul. He noted that he would like to do a new menu with a new season in the spring, along with focusing on the facility's unique details, such as a gazebo that's available to host functions, and the patio that overlooks the golf course.
He noted that he is also looking forward to working alongside newly hired golf course manager and marketing coordinator Real Joly, who is set to begin work with the golf course in early December.
Also reported at Monday night's meeting was that the Town of St. Paul will be submitting an insurance claim for a break-in at the Golf Course Maintenance Shop that occurred on Oct. 11. The estimated amount stolen from the maintenance shop is $7,500.
"We have since changed all locks, installed an alarm and installed security bars on all windows," reported Parks and Recreation director Harvey Smyl in his written director's report to town council.
Traffic Count
A traffic count that was required as part of the process in applying for grant funds for a joint project between the Town of St. Paul and County of St. Paul at 58th Street and Twp Road 582 and results "greatly surpassed the required numbers needed to qualify," said Heyman in her CAO report.
The count, which was done over the course of one day from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m., revealed about 1,200 vehicles using the road. The number required to be met was 400.
Ballpark playground
The town has submitted grant application to the Alberta Tire Recycling program for a new playground surface at the Ballpark park, located next to the ball diamonds, across from the Ag Corral. The grant would allow for the whole surface area of the park to be done with a ground tire surface, according to the town's agenda from Nov. 26.
Coun. Gary Ward asked Heyman if she was aware that the playground equipment may not meet current safety codes, and said he believed it would likely result in the entire playground having to be redone if any work was done to the park.
Hyman said she wasn't aware of the potential issue, saying, "I'll check into it." She added that she had asked town employees which park was highest on their priority list for ground work, and it was noted that the ballpark playground was the top priority.
Utility bills
The town has extended the payment deadline for utility bills to Dec. 14, rather than Nov. 30
"Because utility bills may be stuck in the postal system, the Town changed the utility payment due date," reads the Nov. 26 town agenda. And due to the upcoming holiday season, staff will not have enough time to put together disconnection notices as per the town's bylaw.
Town administration request that council postpone disconnect notices until after the November/December 2018 billing in the New Year, to which council agreed.
FCM
Council discussed attendance at the 2019 Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) conference, which will be held in Québec City from May 30 to June 2, 2019.
The hotel where the town reserved rooms is requested a one-night non-refundable deposit for each of the five reserved rooms, heard council. The cost of each hotel room per night is $229, and the hotel is located in close proximity to the conference.
The approximate cost per individual to attend the FCM conference is $3,969, according to information presented on Monday night.
Coun. Nathan Taylor said he would like to be sure there are at least five individuals who are available to attend the conference, if deposits are being put on five rooms.
Coun. Ron Boisvert pointed out that if the town ended up with an extra room, the town could offer it to another municipality.
It was also noted that council's goal was to get all council members to attend the conference within the first year and a half of being on council, since much of the council elected in October of 2017 was new to their positions. Only Coun. Norm Noel was re-elected in 2017, while Boisvert and Ward had served on past councils.
A motion to put a deposit on all five reserved rooms was carried.
JumpStart
Council received a request from Canadian Tire JumpStart for support of a fundraiser scheduled for Dec. 1. The talent show fundraiser was put on to raise funds for JumpStart, a program that helps families in need pay fees involved in having children play sports.
Heyman noted the request didn't fit into any of the policy categories that exist. It was also noted that money raised for JumpStart is matched by Canadian Tire and comes back to the community.
"It's a very good program," said Boisvert.
Council agreed to support the event with a $500 donation.
Library washroom
Council defeated a motion to upgrade the washroom at the St. Paul Municipal Library, in an effort to help the Friends of the Library move forward with the project.
Because the Friends of the Library raises funds through working bingos and casinos, some of its funds are restricted by Alberta Gaming and Liquor Commission (AGLC). AGLC said no to allowing the funds to go to renovations because the Friends of the Library doesn't own the building.
But, AGLC also noted that if the town can't fund the renovations as the building owner, they will look at the situation again.
A motion to approve the upgrades to the washroom was unanimously defeated, with council saying budget constraints were too tight for the project. The project's price tag is pegged at about $10,000 to $12,000.
