TOWN OF ALTONA
"You’re always welcome in Altona."

Christmas is only a month away and at this time I invite everyone to the annual Christmas tree lighting on Friday, November 23^rd at the Altona Civic Centre. This is a time for all of us to start the festive season with songs and messages.

The construction of the new Medical Clinic is underway and together with MacDonald’s being near completion they will provide additional services for the community.

Council is planning the sod turning for the new Exhibition Centre to take place in the spring of 2002. We are still short of our goal with regards to financing and we invite anyone interested to forward his or her contributions to the Town of Altona.

The Town of Altona Council, Chief Administrative Officer and Management Team will conduct their annual planning session on December 5^th – 7^th. It is during this time that the budget is finalized for the upcoming year, as well as, reviewing plans for the next number of years. I will report more on the planning session in a future issue.

He spoke of the shifting demographics of North America. We are an aging population and in the next 15 years the number of people who will be over the age of 55 will double. At the same time, the gap between the “haves” and the “have nots” is widening. Our mind set is that we have always had social programs and discounts for our seniors. But now this group who are 55 and over, control over 60% of the wealth in the country. As we continue to grow older, the seniors, of which I will be one, will take over the recreation facilities. But if we continue to give this group the discounts, we will be asking the younger people with lower incomes to subsidize those who control most of the wealth. If we do not change our mind set,

Johnston argued, many recreation facilities will find themselves in financial difficulty. An interesting argument.

A disturbing trend in recreation is the apparent rapid loss of volunteers in Canada. In the last three years, this country has lost 1,000,000 volunteers. We have gone from 7,500,000 volunteers to 6,000,000—a 13% loss.

Today, people want to be consulted about public policy. I think that this is something that governments can take advantage of.

Johnston also reminded us of the trends in leisure. Activity levels among children are plummeting. In 1988, it was considered that 2/3 of our children had enough physical activity for basic health. In 2001, 1/3 of children are considered to be active enough to have basic health. The building of trails, he said, is the best investment a community can make. What are the winning themes in leisure? Health and wellness, community and family activities are what people are now concerned with. In terms of facilities, the trend is away from exclusivity. Rather than building arenas, we should build multi-use facilities. Does any of this have any significance for Altona? The best investments for a community in the year 2001, Johnston stated, are: outdoor pools, trails, community centres, (he warned us against building an arena only), passive parks, and cultural facilities such as performing arts centres which should be flexible enough to have other uses. It is apparent that we are doing some things right in Altona.

Fundraising to provide equipment and furnishings for the new medical clinic will officially kickoff with a luncheon on November 22, 2001 to which all businesses within the R.M. of Montcalm, R.M. of Rhineland, Town of Gretna and the Town of Altona have been invited. All donations are tax deductible and can be made at the Town of Altona Civic offices. In addition, suggestions for the name of the clinic would also be welcomed at the Altona Civic office.

Construction is proceeding well and a spring opening of this attractive, modern facility would appear to be reasonable.

NOW THEREFORE the Council of the Town of Altona, in open meeting, duly assembled, enacts as follows:

Parking During Snow Removal:

1. Persons shall remove parked vehicles and refrain from parking on public streets and lanes during and after snowfall events which require the removals of accumulated snow. Persons may resume parking on streets after snow removal operations have been completed.
2. No person shall deposit snow from private properties onto cleared public roads, streets and lanes. Persons found depositing snow on public roads, streets and lanes after the snow on the roadway has been removed will be charged the cost to remove such snow.

Thank you to the following sponsors for FREE public skating Altona & District Lions Club Altona Elks Altona/Gretna Optimists Club Rhineland Teachers Association Wiebe’s Funeral Home PUBLIC SKATING HOURS Pre-school - Mondays & Wednesdays from  10:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. Senior Skating - Tuesdays from 10:30 a.m. - 11:30 p.m. Public Skating - Wednesdays & Fridays from 7:00 - 8:00 p.m. and Sundays from 1:00 - 3:00 p.m.

Individuals or Businesses

If you are interested in sponsoring a bench along the trails throughout the Town of Altona. Please contact the Altona Recreation Office at 324-9005 or rone@townofaltona.com.

Boat Safety Course

Boat safety course will be held on Saturday, November 24th, 2001 from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. at the Gold Room in the Golden West Plaza. Instructor will be Laurel Selman. Cost will be $45.00 per person.

As of September 15, 1999, anyone born after April 1, 1983 must obtain a Pleasure Craft Operator Card to operate a power-driven boat. As of September 15, 2002 anyone operating a power-driven boat less than 4 metres in length must obtain a Pleasure Craft Operator Card. As of September 15, 2009, any person operating a power-driven boat of any length must obtain a Pleasure Craft Operator Card.

Recreational Hockey

Recreational hockey will begin on Saturdays starting December 1st to the end of the season at the Gretna Arena. Cost will be $50.00 per session or $5.00 drop in fee. Instructor will be Rudy Franz.

Up and Coming Senior’s Events

It gives us great pleasure to see the seniors of Altona participating in the many planned events we are hosting. Here is an up date of things to come.

• Waffle Breakfast on November 22^nd - 9 a.m. at the Ebenezer Apartments. $2.00 per person.
• Movie night at the Altona Senior Center on Wednesday, November 28^th - 7:30 p.m., all are welcome to view The Carol Burnett Show a Reunion.
• Bus Tour to Island of Lights in Portage la Prairie. Pre-register by calling 324-9005 by November 19^th, cost will be $25.00 per person. Look in your community calendars for further programming.

For more information or to register for any of the above, contact the Altona Recreation Office at 324-9005 or rone@townofaltona.com.