Hay River (Nov 20/06) - Hay River Mayor John Pollard spoke to the town's chamber of commerce recently, telling members he has met with Peter Martselos, mayor of Fort Smith, to discuss a closer partnership between the two communities. Tourism will be a focus of talks, said Pollard.

Both communities want to attract more visitors.

Pollard said he suggested to Martselos that a Hay River committee could travel to Fort Smith to meet with council and come up with "achievable goals".

Pipeline discussions

Esso officials will be back in town early this month to talk about the Mackenzie Gas Project, said Pollard.

He said that serious discussions must take place about the proposed pipeline, which would siphon gas from the Beaufort-Delta into northern Alberta.

"We need to get down to brass tacks," he said.

A council pipeline committee will be meeting with the Esso representatives.

"We need to be preparing ourselves even if it is two to three years ahead," said Pollard.

More doctors

Pollard said there has been co-operation in Hay River to bring more doctors to the community.

A plan is being formulated, he said, though he declined to give specifics. "(The plan) will include a lot of people to make the community more attractive for physicians," said Pollard.

"We hope it will start to pay off here very quickly."