Former Humboldt Mayor Malcolm Eaton is no longer elected to office but that doesn't mean the former educator is going to stop promoting the city he led for a decade.

Eaton returned to council chambers on Monday to fill council in on his next adventure which includes visiting a number of mining communities in Columbia as part as his work with Federation of Canadian Municipalities. Eaton was on the FCM board during his time as Humboldt's mayor. He will travel to the South American country with other delegates and join in discussions with other similar sized centres who are greatly impacted by the industry of mining.

Eaton will provide a report when he returns, he was also honoured by new mayor Rob Muench and presented with a print of the Canada 150 mural now on display across from city hall.

Also discussed during the first council meeting of the year was the Humboldt and District Chamber of Commerce's decision to move away from their downtown office and get back into one building. The plan is to expand on the campground office and make it more business friendly.

Council also passed the recreational vehicle bylaw that states you must park 1.2 metres from the sidewalk. That issue was a hot topic in the summer when the previous council voted to make the distance two metres, that was changed temporarily then, it's now finalized as 1.2 metres.

Council also agreed upon supporting two grant applications through the Provincial-Territorial Infrastructure Component and Clean and Waste Water Fund. The two projects they have in early planning are a new lift station at 101st Street and Saskatchewan Avenue as well as more work at the lagoon. The total price tag is over $10 million for the two jobs.

Grant funding could cover two-thirds the cost.