'We're just very blessed': Drumheller looks to become a 4-season tourist destination

Heather Colberg - Drumheller Mayor Drumheller Mayor Heather Colberg discusses infrastructure, relations with the provincial government and ramping up the tourism sector.

Heather Colberg, mayor of Drumheller, speaks with Alberta Primetime host Michael Higgins about the valley’s tourism sector, housing, and relations with the provincial government.

Michael Higgins: You're part of a newly formed mid-sized towns caucus of mayors. What level of advocacy are you looking to create as a group?

Heather Colberg: Just wanting to work together with communities of the same size, that we can come up with. We all have very similar problems as far as infrastructure and controlling costs and everything else, so it's just kind of a group of us that started actually as a mayors of south central and then we've expanded into this, and it's turned out really well. And really super good input. In fact, the executive of the group had a meeting with the premier last week and it went really well, so (we're) really proud that. You know, the leadership of this group took the bull by the horn and yeah we're getting involved and trying to share what we're up against.

Michael Higgins: So there has been a meeting already with the premier. How do you see this group then responding to debate, municipal contention, around legislation from the spring sitting? Especially Bills 18 and 20 and maybe how they impact municipal-provincial governance dynamics?

Heather Colberg: I think the biggest thing, Michael, is that we just continue to communicate with the government. I always believe that there's a solution as long as you can keep the lines of communication open and I think that the premier and Minister Ric McIver from municipal affairs also have really opened the discussion with this committee and this group. And I think that's the way we're going to really share the ideas, what we're trying to accomplish. And it's all really for the best of Albertans and that's really what, you know, the province wants at the end of the day.

Michael Higgins: Let's look to what are your distant neighbours, thoughts on Calgary's feeder main challenges and how that relates to what your community has or is maybe facing with vital infrastructure?

Heather Colberg: We just went through a bit of a water issue here, as well. We had a break and it's something that we all have to take very seriously with the infrastructure and I know that many of us are going up against it. In fact, we're looking and trying to find ways to help ourselves even, while we're trying to, you know, come up with some resolutions with the province as to how we can get better funding for these kinds of things. Because, I mean, even our community, we go from 8,000 people to 800,000, you know, throughout a summer and there's a lot of wear and tear on our, you know, water system, sewer, water, roads, sidewalks, bylaw, RCMP. So all these things kind of come into play in the cost of trying to operate the municipality. So we're looking for support, obviously like everybody else, and it's just that we take a really huge impact with the growth, that happens, you know, three months of the year.

Michael Higgins: There were concerns earlier in the year over discussions around the community's pride crosswalk that evolved into development of new policy. Where did those discussions land?

Heather Colberg: That turned out really well. Unfortunately, it kind of came out of the gate a little wrong and there was no intention. We have a really good relationship with our Pride community and what it started out as, actually, was we were just trying to find a way to put the Pride. Whether it was on murals, or whether it was other ways, and we came up with a really good solution. We have a trail system here in the valley and we found an area that they were comfortable with and they've placed their Pride sidewalk out there actually right now and it's just adjacent to our hospital. They've done a beautiful job of it and we're just very proud that we were able to come to solutions and work together. We're a very, very inclusive community and we're proud of our Pride community and the work that they do within our valley.

Michael Higgins: A moment ago you mentioned how the element of tourism really brings a lot of people to town. So on the issue of housing, new short-term rental regulations are being implemented in Drumheller this summer. What's council looking to accomplish with that?

Heather Colberg: When we got elected in 2017, there were 320 houses on the market and as of, I heard just a couple weeks ago, we're less than 20. We've got a housing crisis, like many other communities, and so we're looking for solutions. What was happening was mainly the houses were getting bought up for short-term rentals, just for Vrbo, Airbnb, that type of thing. And so we wanted to just cap it and control it and make sure that this is safe. Really, it comes down to a safety program that makes sure when people come to visit and stay here, that they're following similar regulations that the hotels and bed and breakfast have to maintain. It’s safety and it's looking after those who visit our community.

Michael Higgins: So how does that play then into the tourism conversation in your community and your approach to further developing the industry?

Heather Colberg: We really are, we're just very blessed. We've got great support from Travel Alberta, and we have a Travel Drumheller organization within the community and they're doing some amazing work for our community. And they're really pushing to create an all season, four-season destination so that people come to visit us not just in the summer, but they can come year round and see all the things we have to offer here. And I think that's where it's really exciting that having this work on all facets. Short-term rental, pay parking, a lot of the things that we're doing, are trying to help encourage and help sustain the 4,000 taxpayers that we have in this community. So there's a lot of great things happening and I'm proud of the organization; Travel Drumheller is doing really, really well.

Michael Higgins: Speaking of tourism I have to ask about Jurassic Jamboree. What came of this unique, creative bid to break a Guinness World Record?

Heather Colberg: It was an incredible, incredible day here in the valley and unfortunately, I guess, nobody expected as many people to show up as they did. And so they had trouble counting it but the offset of it, it's going to be happening. The jamboree is going to take effect every year now. And there was just so much fun and I think people just really enjoyed and really engaged in the fact that we are the dinosaur capital of the world and they got to see that we really do embrace who we are. And yes, we're excited to see the jamboree again next year and we'll work back at that, to getting that record. Just have to figure out a few mechanics behind it.

Michael Higgins: Mechanics, corralling inflated dinosaurs, getting them all in the same spot at the same time. OK, looking ahead, what's on the radar for priorities in Drumheller through the remainder of the year?

Heather Colberg: We’ve still got our flood mitigation program on the go; we're probably well over 60 per cent done now. We've got a couple of big berms being built this year and we've got the exciting Rails to Trails program happening. There has been a lot of support from the community on this and eventually when we're finished, which will be hopefully in the next year, we'll have be able to go from the hoodoos, down to our suspension bridge, across through the Rosedale community, across the Rosedale bridge, all the way through town to the mine, Newcastle bridge across, and it will be an incredible ride or walk for our residents, for our visitors. So we're really super excited about that. We just finished a big park in behind our Badlands community facilities, we have a beautiful Centennial Park now. A lot of weddings are already booked to use that facility and then of course we have our Royal Tyrrell Museum and our Atlas Coal Mine Museum, the Barney's, they're all really busy. And then we have a lot of festivals going on this summer besides all of our events in the downtown plaza. So there is a lot happening in the valley and it's a lot of fun here in the summer.