Fort McMurray awaits housing land, dispute with oil producer simmers

EDMONTON – A few weeks before he stepped down as premier, Ed Stelmach flew to Fort McMurray with a key document tucked into his briefcase.

The proposal for a 20-year supply of land — enough to stabilize sky-high housing prices, enough to handle an expected 200,000 people — was a key issue for Mayor Melissa Blake and the struggling boomtown.

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Strathmore, other growing centres wrestle with thorny police issues

Sitting with a cup of tea in Rocky’s Bakery on 2nd Avenue, Robert Sturm recalled a time when the sidewalks out front were the domain of a single policeman employed by the town.

Strathmore was much smaller in the early 1970s, when the single police officer kept a watchful eye over the town’s 1,500 or so residents.

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Newcomers to Lloydminster both good and bad news

Lloydminster fits the stereotype of a classic western boom town – a city full of transient young adults, an increase in drug-related crime, and a new strip club just off the highway.

But that’s certainly not all there is to Lloydminster.

“A lot of people comment, you can almost divide Lloyd down the middle,” says Amanda Amundrud, who grew up here and opened a community restaurant and music venue in one of the youngest cities in Canada.

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Camrose looks beyond retail for new employment

At Fiona’s Cafe, Tanya Schultz whips up a foamy cafe latte while Pat Branson stirs the homemade soup and tends shortbread made with local organic flour.

Just nine months ago, the two women – best friends for 16 years – opened the coffee shop and joined the impressive ranks of local entrepreneurs in downtown Camrose, a city of 17,286 southeast of Edmonton.

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