Jasper council received updates on wildfire recovery progress, advanced a revised water services bylaw and approved a loan guarantee supporting a new 40-unit affordable housing development.

Parks Canada has issued occupancy permits to 22 properties rebuilt from the Jasper wildfire, including the first home in the Cabin Creek neighbourhood.

Doug Olthof, Jasper’s Director of Recovery, told municipal council on Tuesday, May 5 that the number of properties in the prepare-and-design stage has been steadily shrinking since last year as more properties move into the rebuild process. He also noted how out of the 312 dwelling units included in existing permits, 87 of those are net-new units.

“That represents progress toward the objective of densification and the increasing number of dwelling units in the community,” Olthof said.

Out of the fire-impacted properties, 151 were in the prepare-and-design stage, 81 were going through the application process, 43 have had their permits approved and were ready for construction and 77 have construction underway.

Parks Canada launched an auto-permitting system for low-risk residential projects within town on April 21 and issued 13 permits under the system within the first week.

All debris within the townsite has been removed. Out of 361 properties, 12 still need to submit soil sample reports, and Parks Canada is reviewing reports from two others.

Interim housing is now fully occupied or allocated with move-ins continuing and 764 individuals housed within the program. Olthof said they had completed installing the additional sites, and landscaping would continue at interim housing sites throughout the summer.

To aid in seasonal recruitment, eight businesses have been offered reserved spaces in Marmot Meadows dorms for staff housing.

According to the Jasper Recovery Coordination Centre (JRCC), 53 per cent of residents housed in interim housing are employed by local small businesses, and 23 per cent are employed by larger businesses. The remaining 24 per cent includes public-sector employees and others.

“The interim housing program significantly supports business recovery in Jasper by housing a large number of people employed by Jasper businesses,” Olthof said.

In the surrounding park, Parks Canada will reopen 75 per cent of frontcountry campsites and 100 per cent of backcountry campsites this summer. The popular Valley of the Five Lakes trail is expected to open on May 23, with the Wabasso Lake and Curator trails opening this summer.

Olthof said the Canada Strong Pass and other campaigns would support the return of visitors to Jasper National Park.

Water services bylaw

Council gave the first two readings to an updated water services bylaw that better reflects modern standards and which clarifies rules around bleeders and billing adjustments.

Last updated in 2014, this bylaw regulates service connections, metering, billing, enforcement and system maintenance.

During last week’s committee of the whole meeting, Jasper’s CAO Bill Given said the updates not only streamline the bylaw and address operational gaps but also align with modern provincial and national standards. Among other changes, the bylaw adds a bleeder flow limit of one litre per minute. Anything higher will be billed to the owner.

“Administration’s seen situations where folks may be running their bleeder to an excessive flow, which is a waste of treated water,” Given said. “We’ve seen situations where it’s 10 times what is probably required.”

As well, the old bylaw provides no guidance on making retroactive billing adjustments.

Under the new bylaw, the Municipality may adjust bills based on meter testing or verification results. If a meter is found inaccurate by more than three per cent, the Municipality can adjust the most recent billing period of two months—but not further back.

“This is reflective of the fact that as a consumer, you have a responsibility to be looking at your bills on a regular basis,” Given said.

A revised bylaw was first presented to committee on April 14 but was sent back to administration with a number of changes and suggestions.

This includes clarifying that a termination notice would be given to a consumer, such as a tenant, and not necessarily just the owner, as well as specifying what standard is used for determining the frost penetration depth when installing water services.

The bylaw still requires third and final reading before coming into effect. This will likely happen at the next regular council meeting on May 19.

Housing loan guarantee

Council gave third and final reading to a loan guarantee bylaw that would allow the Jasper Municipal Housing Corporation to secure a $14.2-million federal loan.

This loan will support the $21-million Connaught affordable housing development that will create 40 below-market units.

The guarantee would specifically apply to a $5-million forgivable loan and a $9.2-million repayable one from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation.

The Connaught development is the first residential project undertaken by the Jasper Municipal Housing Corporation.

Peter Shokeir, Local Journalism Initiative // info@thejasperlocal.com