(CHAT News Today)

By Tiffany Goodwein

Entire council resigns in Southern Alberta village

May 2, 2022 | 11:24 AM

EMPRESS, AB – The words “Welcome to Empress” quickly stand out as you enter this tiny village with a population of about 140, approximately 146 kilometres northeast of Medicine Hat near the Alberta-Saskatchewan border.

It’s the kind of place where everybody knows everybody and the rumbling sounds of a semi-truck bring a sense of excitement.

“That is the most sound you will hear in a month it’s so quiet in this little town,” said resident Joy Hensel.

But behind its quiet streets, is big-time drama. All three of the village’s elected officials resigned last month. And prior to that, the CAO quit, forcing Kelly Tucker to step up to the plate as interim CAO.

He said the upheaval in their village had to do with a few things, mainly a lack of platform.

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“Here I believe, there was a disconnect with administrators’ interpretation on a way forward, and if anything it was the elected officials, with our voting public not knowing for sure, what it was they stood for, what they were actually trying to change in the village of Empress, it got misinterpreted and eventually it got to a breaking point,” he said.

With no elected officials, the province’s ministry of municipal affairs is moving to appoint an official administrator that will be granted the powers of council. In a statement to CHAT News, the ministry also said resignations like these are not uncommon in Alberta.

“This administrator will be able to assist with governance and ensure there are no disruptions to the delivery of services to the residents of Empress until a time when quorum on council can be re-established,” stated Scott Johnston, spokesperson for the Ministry of Municipal Affairs.

Arlen Johnston has lived in Empress for 10 years and previously served on council. He said he was disappointed when he heard that all of his elected officials were no more.

“I think there was quite a few mistakes made, and you know really there was a lot of fires going on but there was a lot of gasoline poured on those fires, and what happened was is things got out of control,” he said.

An election will be held in the coming months, an opportunity Johnston hopes will help the village move forward in a more positive direction.

“We need some people in there that are level headed and can take on the challenges that are in a rural community at this time, with what is going on in the world, we need people that can make those choices on behalf of all of the citizens,” he said.

Those citizens look to unify with one another despite the recent upheaval.

“We have to go forward. We have to get past this,” said Hensel.