Lacombe County council discussed and reviewed a number of policies as councillors familiarized themselves at their first regular council meeting since the municipal election. The meeting was held Oct. 30.

Staff presented to councillors OP (45) New Paved Road Criteria policy, which was updated in 2024 they noted. It was also noted that when this policy was developed a third party consultant helped out. “The policy guides how roads are to be evaluated, enabling them to be prioritized for future paving,” stated the agenda memo. The memo also included a prioritized list of roads within the county that could be paved, and their rating according to criteria. As noted, Range Road 2-4 was tops and it was noted that road was paved in 2025.

It was stated that Lacombe County looked at how other municipalities handle paving priority, which matched Lacombe County’s acknowledgement of the industry standard traffic milestone of 400 to 500 vehicles per day. It was noted that traffic counts beneath this threshold suggest a particular road is probably not a priority for paving.

During discussion the subject of Range Road 30-0 came up, with comments made that it has multiple residences on it and substantial traffic. However, staff responded that road is still well below the 400 vehicles per day threshold.

Staff also noted the price tag paved roads carry with them; they observed that Lacombe County has been saving about $500,000 per year for reserves in order to help pay for paving projects. It was observed that another factor in the potential paving of a road is if the county can afford it.

Staff added that they constantly look at the county’s roads and don’t just watch the ones that made it onto the priority list.

Councillors accepted the new paved road priority criteria policy for information.

Health and safety orientation

Staff offered a health and safety orientation for councillors, including occupational health and safety rules and how they apply to elected officials.

It was noted since councillors hire the chief administrative officer (CAO) who has authority over staff, under OH&S legislation councillors can be considered an employer or supervisor.

The presentation noted health and safety hazards can include many different things, including environmental factors, chemicals, psychological issues or biological.

Councillors also heard reports on emergency response, including within the Lacombe County building.

Councillors accepted the report as information.

Public participation

Staff reviewed Lacombe County’s public participation policy for councillors. It was noted this policy is mandated by the provincial government and describes how the public can get involved in the municipality's decision making process.

It was stated the policy allows for different levels of public engagement, and not all projects require all levels of such engagement.

Councillors accepted the policy as information.