Last week + Regular Council Meeting August 30, 2021
Although Monday’s meeting marks the second-last Council meeting of the term, our September 13th meeting tentatively includes an Emergency Operations Centre update - Should Council need to make any decisions arising from this update, Mayor Heron may call a Special Council meeting to make decisions about emergent issues.
Last week
Homeland Housing: As an ex-offico member of Homeland’s Governance & Policy Committee, I’ve been kept busy with helping finalize updates to our policies and on-boarding expectations for our post-election board. This is an incredibly hard-working and thoughtful group, and I’m honoured to serve with them.
Arden Theatre Plaza Series: On a personal note, I had the pleasure of attending another of the outdoor concerts hosted by the Arden, this one featuring Farhad Khosravi & Daniel Stadnicki with opening guest, Vinok Orchestra. This concert was particularly special to me because my partner worked with the main show performers on a multi-disiplinary art performance earlier this year, but I didn't get to see this duo perform at that time! There is still time to take advantage of this Thursday evening series for anyone looking for a wonderful night out.
Agenda highlights
Mayor’s Celebration of the Arts Policy
The Community Living Standing Committee recommended that we adopt the policy developed by the Arts Advisory Committee, with a small amendment to allow the committee or a sub-committee to act as the jury for awards. If this passes, we’ll have to update the Arts Committee Bylaw to align.
Review of effectiveness of standing committees
A couple of years ago, Council moved from a system where all members of Council were involved in discussions related to items that require Council decisions to one where two separate committee - the Community Living Standing Committee and Community Growth and Infrastructure Committee - were formed in an attempt to streamline discussions and improve productivity. We had intended to complete an evaluation of this new process prior to the 2021 term, but this was not completed - As a result, both committees considered recommendations on how to move forward. Unfortunately, the committees have recommended opposite approaches, with the CLSC recommending that we rescind the bylaws forming the committees, and the CGISC recommending that we push a decision until 2023. These recommendations are in-line with the original votes to create the committee - Councillor McKay, Hughes and myself were opposed to their creation, while the members of the CGISC were in favour. It will be interesting to see how the next Council handles their policy discussions - Both frameworks have value, and the most effective approach will likely depend on the makeup of the next Council.
St. Albert’s Strategic Framework
Our strategic framework - how St. Albert plans for the future - is grounded in our commitment to our Vision, Pillars of Sustainability, Council’s Strategic Plan and the resulting Business Plan, our Municipal Development Plan, Long-Range Strategies, Mid-Range Department Plans, Budgeting, Program and Service Delivery and Optimization, and Monitoring/Reporting. Since the last policy update, we’ve formalized some of the processes and we’ve reviewed Ernst and Young’s recommendations from their Operational and Fiscal Review. Based on these changes, Admin is recommending an update to the policy - I’m particularly pleased to see the following future long-range strategies included: Sustainable Growth, Housing Options, Community Well Being, Mobility Choices, Resilient Infrastructure, Cultural Richness, and Organizational Strategy.
Edmonton Annexation ($50,000)
St. Albert & Edmonton are in discussions regarding a parcel of Edmonton land on the north side of the Henday, and these funds will be used to facilitate the related work.
2022 Budget Dates
Admin has proposed the following key dates for the Budget 2022 process, which are in addition to Council meetings and new-term commitments:
Nov 2 - CAO Presentation & Committee of the Whole Budget Presentations (2pm start)
Nov 4 - Committee of the Whole Budget Presentations (2pm start)
Nov 9 - Community Relations Resident World Cafes (typically evening)
Nov 10 - Community Relations Resident World Cafes (typically evening)
Nov 15 - Community Relations Stakeholder Engagement
Nov 16 - Community Relations Stakeholder Engagement
Nov 23 - Committee of the Whole PM Deliberations (2pm start)
Nov 25 - Committee of the Whole PM Deliberations (2pm start)
Nov 30 - Committee of the Whole PM Deliberations if required (2pm start)
Dec 20 - Council Consideration of Utility and Municipal Budgets and Utility Bylaws (2pm start)
Master Rates Bylaw (+$34,700)
Every year, this bylaw is updated as part of the budget process. These are the fees charged by the city for everything from a business licence, to lot grading certificates, to encroachment agreements. The proposed changes are expected to result in a modest change to revenues. My only question will be about the cannabis retail permit fee compared to the typical retail fee ($865 vs. $144) - In Edmonton, Council aligned these fees to help combat black-market sales and help the business community in general, but I’m not sure if we’ve received recommendations from our Policing/Health/EcDev stakeholders about whether this change could reduce pressures in policing/health or increase competitiveness of legitimate businesses.
Solar Farm Borrowing Bylaw (2nd & 3rd Readings)
Solar farms have been a hot topic for the last couple weeks! To clear up a few misconceptions that have been floating around:
On Monday, we are not making a decision to build or not build a solar farm. What we are considering is a funding model. We're also considering funding detailed designs that will give us the information needed to make an informed decision about a potential farm. If we approve a borrowing bylaw, which is kind of like a mortgage pre-approval, we still wouldn't borrow for building a farm until after we have more detail about costs - Borrowing would happen after we know the details and after Council approves a project budget in a public forum. Like a mortgage pre-approval, money isn't borrowed until a project is approved. We are also not obligated to borrow the maximum amount approved. One of the alternatives to voting on the borrowing bylaw right away is to fund a study to get more information about the costs to remediate the contaminated site ($35,000) and complete detailed designs ($135,000), which is a good option if we want the bylaw to be more reflective of actual costs.
We also added additional layers of due diligence by engaging external experts in the field to present a feasibility report. Although parts of ATCO's report are confidential, as is typical for this type of advice, their experience in these projects is exceptional. This report follows public Council discussions/decisions that occurred in 2020 - We're being cautious and intentionally not rushing a decision.
On whether I support the solar farm project, my answer is that I support the principle, but require more details to make a final decision. I am committed to ensuring St. Albert is sustainable, both financially and environmentally, so I'm open to exploring avenues that lead to our community being self-sustaining and a strong environmental steward. In a nearby community, BonAccord's Mayor commented that "the long lifespan and potential savings from the solar array convinced [their] council to give it the green light" - I know of many success stories like this in Alberta, which is why I'm open to exploring the option here.
I hope this helps, and please reach out with any questions!
More information about why Council approved the first couple phases of the project, and how it works can be found on the City’s website.
This is a brief and incomplete overview of our meetings, with my personal comments sprinkled in - In no way are my opinions representative of the official direction of council or the City of St. Albert. Please let me know of any typos or errors. Members of the public can also register to speak if they have information to present to council. Full agenda packages can be found on the stalbert.ca website.
