Chris Clegg
South Peace News
Volunteers at the Penny Carnival will have to brave the hot sun and summer showers a while longer.

High Prairie town council has denied a request to help the High Prairie Municipal Library purchase canopies [tents]. The decision came at their May 23 meeting.

Councillor Donna Deynaka moved to deny the request after receiving a text message from Councillor Michael Long, who was absent at the meeting. Long indicated that the High Prairie Sesquicentennial Committee denied the request.

“I’d like to hear from someone who was at the meeting,” said Councillor Debbie Rose.

“I was at the meeting,” said Councillor Brian Panasiuk. I know [the vote] was close.”

At issue was whether the canopies were a legacy project, which is what the committee was formed to promote.

CAO Brian Martinson said, in his opinion, it was not.

The decision still leaves the committee with $20,000 in funds to allocate legacy projects toward, said Martinson.

“They are still looking at anything that might be a legacy,” added Panasiuk, who was the only councillor to vote against the motion to receive for information.

The library’s assistant librarian – program coordinator Kayla Killoran wrote the committee April 20 with the request.

“One of our main concerns is the weather,” she wrote. “If it rains we have no protection for our games or volunteers and if the sun is too hot our volunteers suffer.”

The library was considering buying 10 canopies. Each tent would have the sesquicentennial logo and town logo on them to acknowledge the contribution.

Each legacy project must come to town council for approval.

This year’s penny carnival is Aug. 10.