The Town of Sylvan Lake is preparing to count everyone living in the community to establish a new population figure.
“We’re going to stress the importance of getting counted,” said the town’s chief administrative officer, Betty Osmond. Many grants from other levels of government are calculated on a per capita basis so with an up-to-date tally the town can maximize the amounts received.
“We need to know how the town is growing and changing to plan town services now and for the long term,” noted a letter planned for distribution to everyone in town.
Councillors approved Apr. 19 as the day for the official kick-off of the census.
This year, collection of information will be a little different. Each resident will receive an eight-digit PIN which can we used to complete the census online between Apr. 19 to May 31.
It only takes about 30 seconds to fill in a few simple questions, said Marilee Littmann, executive assistant to mayor and council.
After May 1, enumerators will begin going door-to-door to collect information from those people who have not used the online system.
Besides questions about the number of people in the household, their gender and age, the type of dwelling and whether you own or rent, there are two questions related to the town’s focus on urgent care.
The first in whether anyone in the household has required after hours or weekend health services in the last 12 months and the second is where you accessed those services.