MOUNTAIN VIEW COUNTY - The promotion and support of agriculture in the county was always among his top priorities during more than a decade on Mountain View County council, says Duncan Milne.
First elected in Division 3 in 2010, Milne held the division seat until this week, after deciding not to seek re-election.
In an Albertan interview last week, Milne said he is proud of his time on council and in particular his work on behalf of the region’s agriculture industry and community.
“When I got on council we got away from the urbanization and got back to protecting farmland,” said Milne. “That was the big thing at the time I was elected. Rural Roots was a big, big deal. They were really kicking up a storm. I understood what they were trying to do and I agreed with some of it.”
Rural Roots was a community-based movement that supported and promoted agriculture in the county.
The updating of the overarching municipal development plan (MDP) in 2012 was a key event for the division and county, he said.
“That took us a long time to get to that,” he said. “At that time there was a real division in the county but we came together and we understood that we were all looking the same way.
“That update refocused back on preserving agricultural land. At one point in time they were talking about everything along Highway 2 as being industrial, but we concentrated that around the intersections, trying to make sure we kept it focused in different spots. That was a big deal, getting the focus back on the ag side.”
Milne says his time on the county’s agricultural service board throughout his time on council was a highlight.
“That’s been really good,” he said. “We try to promote ag to younger generations. We started getting younger people involved. That’s a big thing, getting young people involved in agriculture.”
The joint hosting of the provincial agricultural service board tour by Mountain View and Red Deer counties several years ago was a particularly memorable project, he said.
“That was a big thing for us,” he said. “The compliments that we had afterwards were that we set the bar pretty high for what tours should look like. That was a highlight for me and part of that was that we didn’t lose money on it.”
The county’s $500,000 support for the Werkland School of Agriculture Technology at Olds College was an important step for agriculture, he said.
“That was a good thing we did, in my mind,” he said. “Some of the new technology that is coming along in agriculture is astounding. It’s a huge part of agriculture today.”
The county’s $1 million contribution to the Rotary Athletic Park of Olds was also a good move, he said.
County staff was always very helpful during his time on council, he said, noting the appointment of Jeff Holmes as the county's chief administrative officer following the retirement of Tony Martens in 2017 was an important step.
“We’ve got excellent leadership in the county. (Holmes) understands what’s going on and he’s got good solutions on how to make things work and that translates to his entire staff.”
Milne says he is confident the new council will do a good job moving the county forward.
“I hope I always voted for what was best for the county, not just for me or anything else. I voted for the county as a whole because that’s what we were representing,” he concluded.
