Cold Lake, Alberta

Encyclopedia : C : CO : COL : Cold Lake, Alberta

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Cold Lake (2005 population: 11,595) is a city in northeastern Alberta, Canada, named after the lake it is situated near. Cold Lake itself was formerly known as Coldwater Lake.

History

The Town of Cold Lake amalgamated with the nearby communities of Grand Centre and the civilian areas of CFB Cold Lake (also known as Medley) in 1996. The three communities decided to keep the name Cold Lake, and on October 1, 2000, the town became Alberta's newest city. The former area of Grand Centre became Cold Lake South, and the original Cold Lake became known as Cold Lake North.

Formerly known as Cold Lake Beach, the name Medley was adopted during the early 1950s during a period of rapid growth at a time when RCAF Station Cold Lake was under construction.

It has recently been revealed that the town of Cold Lake, Alberta has considered dissolving itself because of the huge debt that it has accumulated^{[[Citing sources citation needed]]}.

Geography

The city is situated in Alberta's "Lakeland" district, 280 km northeast of Edmonton, near the Alberta-Saskatchewan provincial border. The area surrounding the city is sparsely populated, and consists mostly of farmland. The Canadian Armed Forces Cold Lake Air Weapons Range (CLAWR), located to the north of the city, is the northern equivalent to the United States Air Force's Nellis Air Force Range.

Economy

The city's economy is intristically related to military spending at CFB Cold Lake. The region also supports oil and gas exploration and production. The Athabasca Oil Sands project in Fort McMurray is having a growing influence in the region as well.

Every year Cold Lake hosts military forces from around the world for Operation Maple Flag, a training exercise where pilots and support staff of NATO allies can take advantage of the Air Weapons Range and relatively open rural air space. Running for 6 weeks and starting in May of each year, commercial accomodations in the entire region are left with little to no vacancy. This annual exercise contributes a substantial amount of capital into these industries and other hospitality-related businesses.

Recreation

Cold Lake is situated near a large number of campgrounds due to its proximity to the lake. The M.D. campground has powered sites, shower facilities with flush toilets, a covered camp picnic area, and a lookout. The Provincial campground has a large number of sites, and is more secluded than the M.D. site (which is surrounded by development). The Provincial campground boasts a wilderness trail system, a beach, boatlaunch and a powered section.

Kinosoo Beach is a favorite destination during the hot summer months between June and August.

The Iron Horse Trail, a recreational trail situated on a former railway line (see rail trail) has its eastern-most terminus in Cold Lake.

Recreational pasttimes include:

• Karate
• Swimming
• Bowling
• Horse Back Riding
• 4H
• Dance (Piroette School of Dance offers many programs such as Ballet, Tap, Jazz, and Musical Theatre.)

Politics

The last local election was held in 2004, seeing 21 councillor candidates and 2 mayoral candidates. This is in large part due to the previous council having caused much controversy, which resulted in only Fran Jordan returning.

• Raymond Coates, 1996-1998
• Hansa Thaleshvar, 1998-2004
• Allan Buck, 2004-present

The current councillors of Cold Lake are Kelvin Plain, Fran Jordan, Armand Gagnier, Jerry Kolewaski, Craig Copeland, and Debra Pelechosky.

At the provincial level, the city is in the district of Bonnyville-Cold Lake. Its current representative is Denis Ducharme, from the Progressive Conservatives.

At the federal level, the city is in the district of Westlock—St. Paul, and is the largest community in the riding. Its current representative is Brian Storseth, from the Conservative Party of Canada.

Schools

Cold Lake hosts several public schools:

• Grand Centre Elementary School (Preschool, K-4)
• Cold Lake Elementary School (1-4)
• Grand Centre Middle School (5-8)
• Nelson Heights School (5-9)
• Grand Centre High School (9-12, Work Experience)
• Ecole Voyageur (K-12 French, Catholic)
• R.A. Reynolds School (K-6 French, K-9 English)

Additionally, there are a number of private, catholic, or otherwise low-key schools that exist.

• Assumption School (Catholic) (7-12)
• St. Dominic's Elementary School (Catholic) (K-6 French and English)
• Cold Lake Off-Campus

Sports

Cold Lake has a variety of sports, including:

• Hockey (Home to the Cold Lake Ice, Junior B Team) & (Home to the Cold Lake Freeze, Minor Hockey Teams)
• Soccer (Indoor and outdoor)
• Baseball
• Rugby
• Lacrosse

External links

• [City of Cold Lake Municipal Website]
• [Cold Lake & District Genealogy Club]
• [Historical Timeline of Cold Lake]

 

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