EDMONTON – Nakota Isga has three candidates in the 2021 municipal election, including incumbent Andrew Knack.

Formerly Ward 1, Nakota Isga runs from 231 Street in the west to Groat Road in the east, and from Whitemud Drive in the south to the city boundary in the north.

Nakota Isga (nah-KOH-tah EE-ska) comes from the Indigenous language Sioux and means “the people.” Alexis Nakota Sioux Nation is the most northwestern representation of the Siouan language family.

Here’s a look at the candidates in Nakota Isga.

ANDREW KNACK

The ward’s incumbent, Andrew Knack, has been a city councillor since 2013. Knack, who first ran in 2007 when he was 23, says he wants to be re-elected to bring his experience to this council.

“As we continue to work through the pandemic and plan to welcome at least five new members of City Council, it is critical to have councillors who understand the scope of the challenges before us and can build consensus to achieve our common goals,” Knack told CTV News Edmonton.

Knack’s platform includes support for the innovation sector to improve the licensing process for startups, and the expansion of companies that promote innovation, such as Edmonton Global, Edmonton Tourism and Innovate Edmonton.

If re-elected, Knack says he will call on the provincial and federal governments to turn over housing jurisdiction to the large municipalities to expedite affordable housing in Edmonton.

DAVE OLIVIER

Dave Olivier grew up in Ontario and moved to western Canada when he was 15 to work in the oil fields with his brother. Olivier has a background in marketing and accounting, and has owned a restaurant, a fleet of taxis, worked in accounting firms and ran a charter business for the last 20 years.

If elected, Olivier says he will work to limit property taxes to the rate of inflation. According to Olivier, controlling taxes sends a message to businesses that Edmonton is a stable economy to invest in.

“This 30 per cent is taken out of seniors’ pantries and medication budgets. It is preventing young people from getting into their own home, and is forcing young families to struggle to survive instead of thriving in this city as they should,” Olivier said.

His platform says funding for police, fire and ambulance services in Edmonton should be a formula model, based on population growth and changes to the rate of inflation.

STEVE WESTON

Steve Weston is a longtime resident of the Nakota Isga ward, growing up in the Meadowlark area and moving to La Perle as a teen.

He currently drives a large truck for a local construction company but he wants to give back to his community “in a bigger way” as a city councillor.

“If I was to win a seat on council, I would be able to not only help my community but could push for necessary changes that would benefit the entire city,” said Weston in a statement to CTV News.

If elected, Weston plans to advocate to revamp Vision Zero and streamline the approval process for business licences and permits. 

The municipal election is on Oct. 18.

EDMONTON – The driver of a dirt bike is dead after colliding with a pick-up truck earlier in the week, according to RCMP.

On Sept. 22, Morinville RCMP responded to the collision in Alcomdale, northwest of Edmonton.

The 40-year-old driver of the dirt bike was taken to hospital with serious, life-threatening injuries.

“In the morning of September 25, 2021 the male driver of the dirt bike succumb to his injuries,” said Morinville RCMP in a news release.

The driver of the truck was not injured in the crash.

A RCMP collision analyst was at the scene, added police. They did not say what caused the crash.

EDMONTON – A new monument was unveiled in Spruce Grove, it’s a tribute to 54 Albertans who were killed by impaired drivers.

The monument is the sixth one of its kind across Canada, Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) hopes to have one in every province eventually.

“It’s important to the families who have lost loved ones to impaired driving, it’s important for the community to remember why these names are here and how awful and tragic impaired driving can be,” said Jaymie Lyne Hancock, with MADD Canada.

Each monument has elements of the design unique to each province, added Hancock. The Alberta monument is on the grounds of the Spruce Grove RCMP detachment.

“We’ve left space, unfortunately… my hope is that it doesn’t fill up,” said Hancock. “I hope that we can educate the public, I hope that we can continue encouraging people to choose a safe, sober ride home and that none of these tragedies happen anymore.”

With mandatory alcohol screening rules in effect, police have been taking more impaired drivers off the road, according to Hancock.

EDMONTON – Family heirlooms and pieces of local history dating back to the Second World War were returned to their rightful owners Saturday.

Rayanne Boychuck, Enliven Refinishing owner, found the pieces of local history in a dresser, bought at a thrift store, that she planned to restore.

She shared the story with CTV News Edmonton Friday in the hopes the rightful owner and their family could be reconnected with their treasures, including a Bible, Australian combat records, photographs, and love letters.

“We found the soldier’s family, so we are going to give them back,” Boychuk said.

The heirlooms belonged to Peter Moore, an Australian Army veteran. His son, Graham, was watching the newscast on Friday and realized the significance of the items.

“I was following the story, and suddenly something was stated, and I realized, that’s my dad,” Graham said.

“My dad has been gone for nine years,” he added. “We’ve not figured out how these became separated from the family.”

Rayanne Boychuk discovered several items that appeared to have sentimental value in an old dresser in September, 2021. (Amanda Anderson/CTV News Edmonton)

While the family cleared out Peter’s house in 2005, Graham shared how he did not even know the items existed.

“That part of his past has always been a mystery,” he said. “I hadn’t seen anything in relation to my father’s army time. I’ve never seen a single document about it, even when I was in Australia.

“I was absolutely stunned because not only were they here, they were things that I’ve never seen before.

“To see those pictures of my grandma and grandpa and stuff I haven’t seen for years is amazing,” grandson Mark Moore told CTV News. “It’s lovely to see the history.”

Peter’s granddaughter Rebecca saw the CTV News clip, when she immediately recognized her grandmother’s handwriting.

“One of my favourite parts of the first news clip (from last night) was seeing my grandmother’s handwriting,” she said. “I knew right away.”

Among the items recovered were sealed love letters written by Peter’s wife, Vera. Graham says they’ll stay that way.

“I’m going to burn them,” he said, as he teared up. “I’ll take them, I’ll burn them and spread the ashes on their grave. They’re buried side-by-side out in Sherwood Park, and that can sort of be something that remains between the two of them.”

Boychuck said she is happy the heirlooms were reconnected with the rightful owners ⁠— and that it happened so quickly.

“I’m so happy they’re in the right hands finally,” Boychuck said. “(It) couldn’t be nicer. A happy ending for sure.” 

EDMONTON – With Alberta’s health-care system now the focus of a military mission, the people who work within it say they’re reaching a breaking point as stress compounds with negative patient interactions.

Dr. Erika MacIntyre, a critical care physician working in Edmonton’s Misericordia hospital ICU shared with CTV News Edmonton how some patients – who usually are not vaccinated – are verbally abusing health-care staff.

“There has been some individuals who have accused us of giving them COVID,” MacIntyre said. “That’s always a bit of an added stress because that is not the case.”

She recalled another time where one ICU patient, whose condition had improved enough to be able to leave the ICU, offered harmful remarks to the very staff helping them recover.

“On the way out of the ICU, this individual called us killers,” MacIntyre said.

“Despite people’s vaccination status, despite their health, we do the best that we can to treat the individual,” MacIntyre added.

She said the worst stress on health-care workers, however, is the fact that no one knows when the situation in hospitals will improve.

“No day seems to be the same as the one before,” she added. “Everything is changing.

“It’s so much change. It’s hard to even know what form of change to talk about at this present time; the changes to staffing, to where we are.

“We don’t know when this is going to end. We all expect it to get worse before it gets better. So we’ve anticipated that.”

THE DEAD MAKE WAY FOR THE DYING

The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) told CTV News in a statement that after being called upon earlier this week, up to eight ICU nurses and aeromedical transport for critical care patients – both in and out-of-province – are ready to be deployable “within 24 hours.”

Surge capacity in hospitals continues to be added in ICUs, with occupancy 89 per cent yesterday to 83 per cent Friday.

That reduction is not necessarily good news, however.

According to Alberta Health Services (AHS), that six per cent decrease occurred as 18 surge spaces opened in the past 24 hours and some patients either recovered or died.

“It’s tragic that we are only able to keep pace with these sort of numbers because in part some of our ICU patients have passed away,” AHS CEO and president Dr. Verna Yiu said on Thursday. “This reality has a deep and lasting impact on our ICU teams.

“We are facing a fragile balance,” she added.

As of 12:15 p.m. Friday, there were 368 ICU beds open in Alberta, including 195 additional spaces – representing a 113 per cent increase over the baseline of 173 normal spaces, AHS said.

There were 304 total patients in ICU, the vast majority who are COVID-19 positive.

On Friday, the Central zone operated at more than 100 per cent of current capacity, with 26 ICU beds.

The South and North zones were operating at 89 and 87 per cent, respectively. The South zone has 36 beds while the North zone has 15.

The Edmonton zone, with 158 beds, had 84 per cent of current capacity filled while Calgary, with 133 ICU beds, had 75 per cent filled.

Dr. Paul Parks, Alberta Medical Association president, told CTV News that adding surge beds or capacity in one area means taking away from others.

“It’s a bit of a ‘rob Peter to pay Paul,’ every time we add a couple of beds, we impact the system somewhere else,” Parks said. “The whole point is that it’s not infinite.”

Opposition leader Rachel Notley said the CAF assistance requested by the province is helpful but the premier needs to go beyond medical evacuation assistance.

“I think that’s helpful but I think that’s a fraction of what we need,” Notley said.

“What’s really sad is that we are having to call on the Canadian Armed Forces, that we are having to call on the federal government and other provinces,” the Alberta NDP leader added. “We’ve allowed it (our system) to collapse to a scandalous level of incompetence. That needs to stop.”