Longview review results to be announced Thursday

After years of waiting, Longview residents will soon learn the fate of their Village.

The Village had undergone a provincial review throughout the past year after 100 residents, representing almost half of Longview’s voting population, signed a petition seeking a review of the Village’s operations and submitted it to Municipal Affairs on Dec. 5, 2016.

Petitioner Rick Smith said he’s eager to learn the results of the review, which will be announced during Longview’s council meeting in the community hall at 7 p.m. on Jan. 31.

“Whether they signed the petition or not, everyone has been waiting with bated breath to hear the results,” Smith said last week. “Our expectations are certainly high and we’re anxious to find the results of the review. It will be a packed house, I’m sure, on Thursday night.”

Alberta Municipal Affairs appointed Shari-Anne Doolaege of Sage Analytics Inc. to conduct the inspection by gathering data from Village staff, council and residents to investigate the Village’s operations before submitting a report to Minister of Municipal Affairs Shaye Anderson last summer.

In November 2016, Longview council fired its chief administrative officer, Vicky McGonigle, a move that prompted a group of residents to organize a public meeting to encourage people to sign a petition calling for Municipal Affairs to conduct an operational review of the Village.

Among the concerns expressed by petitioners was that Longview has had nine vacancies for the CAO position since 2005, the public wasn’t getting the information it wanted from the Village, meeting minutes were sparse and meetings were held without the public being informed.

Following a preliminary review in 2017 to identify and better understand the concerns and issues that led to the petition, Municipal Affairs decided to conduct an inspection, looking into matters connected with the Village’s management, administration and operations.

“They did a very thorough investigation and review of Longview and its operations, past and present, and obviously the petitioners were concerned with how it was being operated and some of the practices that were being implemented,” said Smith. “They found some things that prompted them to say, ‘We’re going to do a full review.’”

Smith said he anticipates the report will identify issues and provide solutions to fix them.

“They certainly have done a very thorough review, that we could tell, in terms of the time spend and the people they talked to,” he said. “We’re optimistic that this review will certainly benefit the village and will certainly help move us forward. I’m sure it was a worthwhile exercise and the village definitely will be better for it one way or the other.”

Chris Bourdeau, director of Alberta Municipal Affairs communications and public engagement, said the report will first be presented to Longview council and then to the public on Jan. 31. He said it will include highlights of the strengths of the municipal governance and operations, any significant issues identified and a statement as to whether or not the municipality has been found to be managed properly.

Copies of the report will be available to the public at the end of the meeting.