Vulcan councillors vote to replace Trek uniforms
Vulcan’s town council says its signature fashion statement is approaching the final frontier, and replacing the Star Trek-themed jackets will cost more than $4,000.
The town of 2,000, 130 kilometres southeast of Calgary, has wrapped much of its identity in Star Trek mythology since it shares the moniker of the homeworld of the iconic Mr. Spock.
And that means its mayor and six town councillors often sport ceremonial United Federation of Planets jackets, which they wore last November in Calgary at the annual Alberta Urban Municipalities Association convention.
On Monday, council approved plans to replace their aging jackets, some of which have passed down from council to council for years, including one that’s 17 years old.
Vulcan resident Katalin Berta told council the cost for each jacket would be about $620, for a total of about $4,340 for the entire wardrobe change.
Coun. Lyle Magnuson said he did believe the cost was “a lot of money” when he first looked at the estimate, but liked that a local resident is making the jackets.
“I was surprised by the cost of doing it,” said Magnuson, adding later during the discussion that the jackets will be of good quality.
Mayor Tom Grant said he didn’t believe Berta’s per-hour rate of $20 was out of line.
“I did talk to a couple other seamstresses, and they thought this was very reasonable,” he said.
Coun. Lorna Armstrong said councillors have received positive comments on the jackets wherever they go.
Council agreed to amend its 2018 budget to include the cost of the new uniforms.