The Province of Alberta officially agreed to annex ID 349 into the M.D. of Bonnyville on Wednesday, April 28.
The amalgamation, which was first announced by Alberta Municipal Affairs in December 2020, will see the ID 349 land mass also known as the Cold Lake Air Weapons Range absorbed into the borders of the M.D. The M.D. will act as an administrator, distributing the tax revenues collected from the area to our neighbouring municipalities — City of Cold Lake, Town of Bonnyville, and the Village of Glendon.
The M.D. will retain some funds required to maintain and repair the La Corey North Resource Road, which is the main traffic route to ID 349. The M.D. will also collect three percent of the annual tax revenue to cover administrative costs associated with the annexed lands. As per the Province of Alberta’s Order in Council, the tax revenues will be dispersed as per the previously agreed-upon funding model, which is calculated based on tax revenue received (minus road and administration costs), regional population, and the population of each of the three municipalities.
MLA David Hanson was happy to see the fate of ID 349 resolved.
“I campaigned on working on a regional resolution to the ID 349 funding model,” he said. “I am thankful that we had a group of local leaders willing to sit down together and come up with a formula that benefits the entire local region.”
M.D. Reeve Greg Sawchuk is happy the amalgamation is complete, and that local leaders had a hand in guiding the future of the region.
“A municipal boundary change of this magnitude is a huge deal,” Sawchuk said. “M.D. Council recognized the importance of securing the ID early on. We would like to thank the Government of Alberta, Ministers Madu and Allard, and MLA Hanson for their openness to our Made in the Lakeland solution. It will benefit our region’s residents for years to come.”
From an M.D of Bonnyville press release