Alberta village sets yet another byelection, prompting new questions about its viability

For the fourth time in seven months, the northern Alberta village of Berwyn is hoping someone from the tiny community will step up to fill a vacancy on its council.

A byelection has been set for May 15 after Berwyn's mayor resigned on Jan. 31. The date was carefully chosen to provide "a breather" to the 600 residents of the Peace Country community who may — understandably — be electorally exhausted.

"We pushed it as far back as we can, to still be within the time frame that we need to have it," said Matthew Norburn, chief administrative officer of the village 520 kilometres northwest of Edmonton.

And the extra time might be needed to find someone to run, he said.

After three council members resigned late last summer, Berwyn held byelections in October and November. A third vote, scheduled for Feb. 13, wasn't needed because only one candidate filed nomination papers.

The merry-go-round has former mayor Kim Steeves questioning whether the village can remain viable. The grim sentiment was echoed in the words of her successor John Bak, who won the byelection in November after being part of the trio that resigned from council in September. 

"Nobody else wants it." 

It's a familiar story for many small Alberta communities.

Council turnover 

The Berwyn byelections were among 59 reported to Alberta Municipal Affairs in 2022 — the highest number in the last five years. 

Angela Duncan, the mayor of Alberta Beach and a director with the Alberta Municipalities association, said there has been an uptick in elected officials seeking out mentorship and educational programming. 

"We do it for a love of community," she said. "But unfortunately negative political discourse at other levels of government is seeping into the discourse in small communities." 

Berwyn's struggle to attract council members isn't new. All five members of the council were acclaimed in the 2013 and 2021 elections and a 2016 byelection. 

In 2017, a viability study looked at the question of whether Berwyn should remain a village or be dissolved and become a hamlet in the Municipal District of Peace.

The review noted that one potential challenge of remaining a village would be ensuring enough individuals put their names forward to run for municipal council. 

In 2018, residents voted to remain the Village of Berwyn.

Financial constraints 

Since the viability study, the Village of Berwyn has created an intermunicipal collaboration framework with the MD of Peace and the nearby town of Grimshaw.

Norburn said partnerships help the community reduce the cost of services and minimize property tax increases. 

"We have to be super-efficient in what we do, create really strong partnerships with our neighbours and give Berwyn every chance it has to survive," he said. 

In the meantime, the village is trying to attract business back to Berwyn to increase tax revenue. 

"What's going on in Berwyn is not unique to Berwyn. It happens all over," Norburn said. 

The rural community of Hythe, Alta.,about 200 kilometres southwest of Berwyn, recently went through a similar situation. In 2021, its residents voted 95 per cent in favour of joining the County of Grande Prairie. 

Brian Peterson, Hythe's former mayor, cited the cost of replacing aging infrastructure as a big reason why the former village is better off as a hamlet. 

"Infrastructure deficit is the No. 1 killer of small towns and villages," Peterson said. 

Businesses leaving the community for larger centres meant less revenue for the village, he said.  

"It ended up leaving 300 homeowners in a town like Hythe packing the weight of everything." 

Kim Steeves, the recently resigned mayor of Berwyn, is worried about the village's future if it has to start taking on debt. Berwyn's eligible debt limit for projects in the community is $1.6 million, according to the village.

In the meantime, the village's adults have until nomination day on April 17 to think about whether they'll let their names stand for the byelection.

"It's going to be difficult," Steeves said. "We have a brand-new council."