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New Residents: Welcome to Cardston!

New to Town?

Welcome to your new home - Cardston, Alberta! This page is here to help you know what you need to know now that you're living in Town, things like:

How do I set up Utilities? (Water, Sewer, Garbage, Recycling?)

What day is my garbage pickup day?

I have a pet - What are my responsibilities as a pet owner in Town?

I work from home - Do I need a business license?

What big events are there in Town? - View the community calendar.

Bylaws - What are my other responsibilities as a resident in Town?

Land Use - What can I build on my property in Town?

Property Taxes - When are they due and how are they calculated?

Anything else I should know about?

Have a question that's not on the list? Feel free to call the Town Office at 403-653-3366.

Utilities - Setting up Town Services

How do I set up Utilities?

QUICK ANSWER: Call ENMAX (310-2010) for Town Utilities, call whoever you want for everything else (gas and electricity - visit www.ucahelps.alberta.ca/ to compare rates).  

The Town of Cardston provides the following utilities that are billed every month:

  • Water
  • Sewer
  • Garbage
  • Recycling

ENMAX is a utility company in Calgary contracted to read meters and manage billing on behalf of the Town. Everyone in Town must have an ENMAX bill to pay for Town provided Utilities. Call 403-310-2010 to set up an ENMAX account. You can do this before you move to Town and specify the date you move in as your billing start date.

Residents have their choice when choosing a provider for gas or electricity. The Utilities Consumer Advocate can help you compare rates and make an informed decision for a provider.

Water & Sewer

Most of the Town water comes from the St. Mary's River which flows out of Glacier National Park in Montana. It's pumped from the river into reservoirs on the hill South West of Town where it is treated. Wastewater is pumped to our treatment facility on the highway bypass East of Town where is it screened and treated again before being pumped back out to the St. Mary's River.   

The Town maintains the water mains up to and including the service line between the main and the curb-stop shut off valve. The curb-stop is located below ground, usually on the property line for each serviced property in Town. The property owner owns and maintains their water service line from the curb-stop to their house or building, but they own and maintain their wastewater service line all the way out to the connection in the street. 

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What day is my garbage pickup day?

Garbage & Recycling

LINK: Garbage Pickup Schedule and Calendar.

The Town owns a Transfer Station facility about 1km East of Town on 1st Avenue. Garbage is taken to the transfer station where it is loaded into a trailer and hauled out to the sanitary landfill. Ratepayers can take their domestic garbage directly to the transfer station each day it is open (Tuesday, Thursday & Saturday), or leave their bagged garbage at the curb for weekly pickup. The amount you pay on your bill goes towards the operation of the transfer station and maintenance of the landfill.

Weekly garbage pickup is available to all residents and commercial business owners. Each household is permitted to place up to four (4) garbage receptacles (bags only or bagged garbage in garbage cans) at the curb for pickup once a week. A different section of Town is picked up each day by a contractor (see cardston.ca/garbage for the daily pickup schedule). Commercial properties may request a garbage dumpster be placed on their property, or they may share a dumpster with adjacent businesses. These dumpsters are regularly emptied as needed. 

NOTE: There is no Garbage pickup on statutory holidays and some civic holidays, but not all holidays. On weeks where there is a 'garbage holiday' the pickup schedule will be delayed by a day. Please check the calendar when there is a holiday weekend to see what day you should put your garbage out.

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I have a pet

What are my responsibilities as a pet owner in Town?

Get a Pet License

Pet licenses are your lost cat or dog’s ticket home. Licensing fees pay for the upkeep of the pound and your license will ensure your animal is returned to you promptly.

If you have a Cat or a Dog that is at least 6 months old you are required by bylaw to register it within two weeks of it coming to Town, and license it every year in January.

Dog and Cat tag licenses can be purchased at the Town Office. Costs to license spayed or neutered pets is as follows:

Pet Tag Costs
(spayed and neutered animals)
Dog $25.00
Cat $15.00

Get Your Pet Spayed or Neutered

The biggest problem with cats and dogs is overpopulation. In Cardston there are a large number of unaltered cats and dogs that roam into town from surrounding areas that breed and produce litters of animals, either with another stray, or with someone's pet. The best way to control Cat and Dog populations is to have your pets spayed or neutered. 

Off Leash Dog Park

The only place you can legally walk your dog off-leash is in the off-leash dog park located by the creek just off of Main Street in Lions Park. Everywhere else in Town you are required to keep your dog on a leash at all times when off your property.  

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I work from home

Do I need a business license?

According to the Town of Cardston Business License Bylaw (Bylaw #1667):

(5) No personal shall, within the limits of the Town of Cardston, carry on or be engaged in any business unless he or she holds a valid and subsisting business license issued pursuant to the provisions of this by-law and to any or all amendments thereto.

Summed up: If you are in Cardston, and doing something to generate revenue, then either you or your employer must have a valid business license.

This includes any kind of business conducted in residential areas such as:

  • Online Businesses
  • Working from home
  • Music Teachers
  • Door to door sales
  • Selling any products, or providing a service to make a profit

Home-based businesses in residential areas may also require a permit if the business is considered a discretionary use under the land use bylaw. 

If you are unsure whether you require a business license or not, call the Town Office at 653-3366 and speak to the business license clerk.

 

What big events are there in Town?

Town Events

View the community calendar

The Town of Cardston has a community-populated calendar of events. Anyone from the community can share events to the Town Calendar that are open to the public. Visit www.cardston.ca/calendar to view or post an event.

Annual Events in Town include:

Party in the Park (July 1st)
Every year on Canada Day the Town funds a "Party in the Park" usually hosted in Lions Park or at the Remington Carriage Museum. The party is geared towards kids, and there are always fireworks after it gets dark.

Heritage Days
Cardston's Annual Celebration - takes place every year in August during the week of Heritage Day, which is observed on the first Monday in August. Events during heritage days include:

  • Parade
  • Mudbog
  • Rodeo
  • Pow Wow
  • Fireworks

People in Town tend to plan their family reunions, high-school reunions, and other get-togethers during Heritage Days.

Remington Days
Hosted at the Remington Carriage Museum, Remington Days feature the famous 'mini-Chucks' Miniature Chuck Wagon Races. See the Remington Carriage Museum Website for more details.

Festival of Lights
The Festival of Lights Committee lights up the streets every November-December with Christmas lights and displays. During their light-up ceremony they host a number of family friendly events that often include sleigh rides, familiy activities and Santa-Claus! In recent years there has also been a festival of lights parade full of floats lit up with Christmas lights. 

Rotary Performing Arts Festival
The Cardston Rotary Club hosts the Cardston Rotary Performing Arts Festival each year at the beginning of spring. For over 50 years the festival has showcased the talents of the community in music, speech, dancing and performance before a panel of adjucators.

Musical Theatre
The Carriage House Theatre draws crowds from all around to their little theatre on Main Street in Cardston for broadway musicals every summer.