Jasper says housing plan promised by Alberta government after wildfire falls short

As much than 600 families find themselves without homes successful fire-ravaged Jasper, the Rocky Mountain tourer municipality and the Alberta authorities are locked successful a standoff implicit what to physique for interim housing.

The state has promised $112 cardinal to physique 250 lodging units for the town, which mislaid a 3rd of each buildings successful a devastating wildfire past summer.

The province, however, has tied that wealth to gathering imperishable single-family homes, which would request to travel rules for parking and setbacks.

The municipality says those rules mean specified a program would lone let 60 homes to get built if each allotted abstraction for interim lodging was used. The municipality would similar to spot the permanent-housing request abandoned.

Michael Fark, Jasper’s manager of recovery, says the numbers are captious fixed much than 600 families person applied for the housing.

“The realities connected the crushed — including constricted onshore availability — mean that this (provincial government) attack would not beryllium astir capable to conscionable the community’s urgent lodging needs and would importantly interaction the quality to conscionable semipermanent lodging challenges,” Fark said successful a play connection connected the municipality’s website.

Town councillors are acceptable to person an update connected the rebuilding process during a gathering Tuesday, and Mayor Richard Ireland is scheduled to code the media afterward.

Ireland was not instantly disposable for comment, but successful a connection implicit the play helium called connected the state to proceed moving with the municipality and Parks Canada to conscionable the needs of residents.

Jason Nixon, Alberta’s assemblage and societal services minister, was besides not instantly disposable for comment.

But successful a societal media station Friday, Nixon said he’s “extremely disappointed” successful the municipality and the national authorities for turning down the provincial plan.

“Ultimately, what we person heard is that Parks Canada and the Municipality of Jasper bash not privation to judge our connection to assistance and are pursuing alternate options, similar enactment camps, that they deemed much appropriate,” Nixon said.

Nixon blamed the municipality and Parks Canada for making “unreasonable demands” erstwhile it comes to lodging support, specified arsenic gathering extracurricular of the nationalist parkland bound and a program to “throw distant implicit $100 cardinal worthy of lodging erstwhile the municipality is rebuilt.”

Nixon said Friday that the province’s connection remains connected the array if the municipality changes course.

The standoff comes arsenic the municipality approaches the six-month day of the July 24 occurrence that overwhelmed firefighting crews and destroyed 350 structures, including homes and businesses.

The municipality maintains that immoderate lodging volition inactive beryllium acceptable by the extremity of February arsenic planned, arsenic municipality unit and Parks Canada person begun the process of buying 50 duplexes.

They are besides considering plans for 120 units of work-camp-style accommodations.