Cypress County | |
---|---|
Country | Canada |
Province | Alberta |
Region | Southern Alberta |
Census division | 1 |
Established | 1985 |
Incorporated | 1985 |
Government | |
• Reeve | Dan Hamilton |
• Governing body | Cypress County Council |
• Administrative office | Dunmore |
Area (2021) [2] | |
• Land | 12,977.99 km2 (5,010.83 sq mi) |
Population (2021) [2] | |
• Total | 7,524 |
• Density | 0.6/km2 (2/sq mi) |
Time zone | UTC−7 (MST) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC−6 (MDT) |
Website | cypress.ab.ca |
Cypress County is a municipal district in southeastern Alberta, Canada that surrounds the City of Medicine Hat and the Town of Redcliff. The municipality is part of Census Division 1, Alberta. [3] The first farm in the area was settled in 1890. [4]
The Cypress County landscape is dominated by a shortgrass prairie ecosystem. [5] The land is flat to slightly rolling. The Cypress Hills region features mixed grasslands, wetlands and montane habitats. [6] Major hydrological features include the South Saskatchewan and Milk rivers. Extensive coulee systems have formed adjacent to major rivers resulting in badlands terrain.
Near Walsh, Alberta at 50°0′38.2″N110°6′48.3″W / 50.010611°N 110.113417°W lies the Badlands Guardian. Here the landscape takes the form of a head wearing a feathered headdress. The head is approximately 300 metres (980 ft) wide and 25 metres (82 ft) deep. This unusual geographic feature is a result of natural erosion of the surrounding prairie.
The following urban municipalities are surrounded by Cypress County. [7] [8]
| The following hamlets are located within Cypress County. [8] |
The following localities are located within Cypress County. [9]
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Cypress County has a semiarid climate [5] with cold, dry winters and warm to hot summers. The winter cold is occasionally tempered by mild and dry chinook winds blowing from the west. Hot summer daytime temperatures are made tolerable by low humidity and rapid cooling in the evening hours. Maximum precipitation typically occurs in late spring and early summer. [3]
In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Cypress County had a population of 7,524 living in 2,658 of its 3,149 total private dwellings, a change of -1.8% from its 2016 population of 7,662. With a land area of 12,977.99 km2 (5,010.83 sq mi), it had a population density of 0.6/km2 (1.5/sq mi) in 2021. [2]
In the 2016 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Cypress County had a population of 7,662 living in 2,689 of its 3,222 total private dwellings, a 6.2% change from its 2011 population of 7,214. With a land area of 13,173.25 km2 (5,086.22 sq mi), it had a population density of 0.6/km2 (1.5/sq mi) in 2016. [11]
Agriculture and the oil and gas industry are the primary economic activities within the county. Agricultural sectors include ranching, wheat and oil seed crops, irrigated alfalfa and other specialty crops. [3] Irrigation water is supplied by the St. Mary River Irrigation District (SMRID) and other smaller water co-operatives. Oil and gas production is extensive throughout the county. Natural gas is gathered through pipe networks and processed in gas production plants near Hilda. [3]
Cypress County has a Municipal Council of 9 elected Councillors. Councillors are elected by the eligible electors (Cypress County residents) who vote for a candidate in their electoral ward. Municipal elections organized by Alberta Municipal Affairs are held on the 3rd Monday in October every four years. Each October, the Councillors elect the Reeve and Deputy Reeve. [12]
The Cypress County Council (elected in October 2021) consists of: [1]
Cypress County is served by the Provincial Electoral Division of Cypress-Medicine Hat and represented in the Alberta Legislature by UCP MLA Justin Wright (politician).
Cypress County is served by the Federal Electoral Division of Medicine Hat—Cardston—Warner and represented in the House of Commons of Canada by Conservative MP Glen Motz.
Cypress County is home to Canadian Forces Base Suffield. The base provides an extensive training area for both Canadian and British Armed Forces. [13] Defence Research and Development Canada facilities are located here as well. [14]
Fire Services
Cypress County Fire Services serves the entirety of Cypress County, excluding the city of Medicine Hat. They are a municipal paid-on-call fire department with 140 firefighters who respond to a yearly average of 250 calls for service. They have 9 fire halls located in Dunmore, Elkwater, Hilda, Irvine, One Four, Schuler, Seven Persons, and Walsh. [15]
The Trans-Canada Highway (1), Crowsnest Highway (3) and Highway 41 traverse Cypress County. [3] The Trans-Canada enters the eastern part of the County near Walsh and travels west through Dunmore and on to Medicine Hat. From Medicine Hat the highway travels in a north westerly direction passing near Suffield and on to Calgary. Planning has begun to upgrade The Trans Canada to true freeway status. The Crowsnest highway enters the County near Seven Persons and travels in a north westerly direction to Medicine Hat. Highway 41 begins at the U.S. border (Port of Wild Horse) and passes through the county in a northerly direction. Highway 41 intersects the Trans Canada Highway near Dunmore and continues on in a northerly direction until it exits the County near Sandy Point Recreational Area at the county's most northerly limits.
Cypress County has developed and maintains an extensive road network within its municipal jurisdiction. Paved, oiled and graveled roads total more than 2700 km in length.
The Canadian Pacific Kansas City main line traverses Cypress County. [3] The line enters the eastern part of the county near Walsh and travels west through Dunmore and on to Medicine Hat. From Medicine Hat the line travels in a north westerly direction passing near Suffield and on to Calgary. A secondary line joins the main at Dunmore and travels in a south westerly direction passing near Seven Persons and on to Lethbridge. Major switching yards are located in Dunmore. Several spur lines and side yards exist along the lines route to facilitate the handling of grain and other commodities.
Cypress County provides municipal services through various departments. Services include agricultural programs, road maintenance, bylaw enforcement, land use planning, development advice and approvals, fire protection, recreation, street lighting, waste collection, recycling, water and sewer, emergency services, and family and community support. [3]
The Prairie Rose School Division #8 serves the needs of public school students. Schools within this district include Eagle Butte High School, Burdett School, Bow Island Elementary, Senator Gershaw School, Parkside School, I. F. Cox School, Margaret Wooding School, Irvine School, Schuler School, Oyen Public School, New Brigden School, Ralston School, Seven Persons School, Beyond Walls Alternative Outreach School and Elkwater Hutterite Colony and six other colony schools. [16] The division office is located in Dunmore. [3]
The Medicine Hat Catholic Separate Regional School Division #20 serves the needs of Roman Catholic students. District schools located in Medicine Hat and Bow Island include McCoy High School, St. Mary's School, Notre-Dame Academy, St. Louis School, St. Francis Xavier School, St. Michael's School, Mother Teresa School and St. Patrick's School. [17] The division office is located in Medicine Hat. [3]
Christian Education K-12 is provided by Cornerstone Christian School.
The Medicine Hat College is a junior college located in Medicine Hat. The college offers university transfer programs, applied degrees and apprenticeship programs. Athletics include basketball, volleyball, and soccer.
Medicine Hat is a city in southeast Alberta, Canada. It is located along the South Saskatchewan River. It is approximately 169 km (105 mi) east of Lethbridge and 295 km (183 mi) southeast of Calgary. This city and the adjacent Town of Redcliff to the northwest are within Cypress County. Medicine Hat was the sixth-largest city in Alberta in 2016 with a population of 63,230. It is also the sunniest place in Canada according to Environment and Climate Change Canada, averaging 2,544 hours of sunshine a year.
Seven Persons is a hamlet in Alberta, Canada within Cypress County. It is located approximately 20 kilometres (12 mi) southwest of Medicine Hat on Highway 3 and has an elevation of 755 metres (2,477 ft).
Redcliff is a town in southern Alberta, Canada. Adjacent to the City of Medicine Hat to the east and Cypress County to the west and north, the town is bisected by Highway 1 and is located on the north bank of the South Saskatchewan River.
Irvine is a hamlet in Alberta, Canada within Cypress County. It is located approximately 35 kilometres (22 mi) east of Medicine Hat on Highway 1 and has an elevation of 763 metres (2,503 ft). The hamlet is located in census division No. 1 and in the federal riding of Medicine Hat.
Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park is a natural park in Canada straddling the Alberta / Saskatchewan boundary and jointly administered by the two provinces. Located south-east of Medicine Hat in the Cypress Hills, it became Canada's first interprovincial park in 1989.
Alberta Provincial Highway No. 1, commonly referred to as Highway 1, is a major east–west highway in southern Alberta that forms the southern mainline of the Trans-Canada Highway. It runs from the British Columbia border near Lake Louise through Calgary to the Saskatchewan border east of Medicine Hat. It continues as Highway 1 into both provinces. It spans approximately 534 km (332 mi) from Alberta's border with British Columbia in the west to its border with Saskatchewan in the east. The route is a divided four-lane expressway throughout the province with the exception of a section in central Calgary where it is an arterial thoroughfare carrying four to six lanes. The highway is a freeway between the Sunshine exit near the town of Banff and Home Road in Calgary. Other rural sections have at-grade intersections with interchanges only at busier junctions. Twinning of the final 8.5 km (5.3 mi) of Highway 1 between Lake Louise and the British Columbia border was completed by Parks Canada and opened to traffic on June 12, 2014, making the whole length of Alberta Highway 1 a divided minimum four-lane route.
Alberta Provincial Highway No. 1A is the designation of two alternate routes off the Alberta portion of Trans-Canada Highway 1. However, it is not the only name used for spurs off Highway 1 - Highway 1X is another such designation. Despite these highways being suffixed routes of Highway 1, they are not part of the Trans-Canada Highway network, and are signed with Alberta's provincial primary highway shields instead of the Trans-Canada shields used for Highway 1.
Chestermere, originally named Chestermere Lake, is a city in the Canadian province of Alberta, within Rocky View County. It is largely a commuter town of Calgary and is a member municipality of the Calgary Region. The city, which surrounds Chestermere Lake, was known as Chestermere Lake from 1977 to 1993.
Valleyview is a town in northwest Alberta, Canada. It is surrounded by the Municipal District of Greenview No. 16 and in Census Division No. 18.
The Municipal District of Acadia No. 34 is a municipal district (MD) in southern Alberta, Canada, east of Calgary, close to the Saskatchewan border, in Census Division No. 4.
Dunmore is a hamlet in Alberta, Canada, within Cypress County, 2.6 kilometres (1.6 mi) southeast of Medicine Hat's city limits on Highway 1 and the Canadian Pacific Railway mainline. A portion of the hamlet is recognized as a designated place by Statistics Canada.
Maple Creek is a town in the Cypress Hills of southwest Saskatchewan, Canada. It is surrounded by the Rural Municipality of Maple Creek No. 111. The population was 2,176 at the 2021 Census.
Acadia Valley is a hamlet in southeast Alberta, Canada within the Municipal District (MD) of Acadia No. 34. The MD of Acadia No. 34's municipal office is located in Acadia Valley.
Alderson is a locality in Alberta, Canada within Cypress County. Now a ghost town, it previously held village status until January 31, 1936, and was known as the Village of Carlstadt from 1911 to 1916. The name was changed during the First World War when many other settlements in Canada and Australia changed German place names.
The Rural Municipality of Reno No. 51 is a rural municipality (RM) in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan within Census Division No. 4 and SARM Division No. 3. Located in the southwest corner of the province, it is adjacent to the United States border to the south and the Alberta boundary to the west.
Walsh is a hamlet in Alberta, Canada within Cypress County.
Suffield is a hamlet in southern Alberta, Canada within Cypress County. It is located on the Trans-Canada Highway approximately 32 km (20 mi) northwest of Medicine Hat, and just south of CFB Suffield.
Eagle Butte High School is a high school in Dunmore, Alberta established in 1996. It is a school with only one hallway, a single floor, and is built into a hill for better heating efficiency. It is part of Prairie Rose School Division No. 8.
The Crown Village of Ralston is east of Highway 884 on CFB Suffield within Cypress County in southern Alberta, Canada. It is approximately 3 km (1.9 mi) north of the Hamlet of Suffield and the Trans-Canada Highway.
The Palliser Region is an area in the southeast corner of the province of Alberta, Canada that has been delineated and is serviced by the Palliser Economic Partnership. It borders the Canadian province of Saskatchewan to the east, and the US state of Montana to the south. It covers an area of 43,504 km2 (16,797 sq mi) The total population of the area stood at 112,314 in 2009. The city of Medicine Hat, with a population of 61,097, is the area’s largest urban centre.