Special Council Meeting - September 16

Along with all municipalities and businesses in Alberta, St. Albert was required to make decisions about the new provincial vaccine passport (REP) system announced last week. To allow the most lead time possible for staff, Council met Thursday morning, the day parts of the new order were supposed to take effect. At that time, the order had not been released, so we based our decision on information from the press conference and AHS website. St. Albert decided to adopt the passport system “with the intent to allow vaccinated users to experience as little disruption as possible to their normal routines and activities”. Thank you so much to our staff who worked late on Thursday trying to interpret the order after it was released late Thursday, then again when an updated order was released late Saturday evening - We still have many questions, but staff have done their best to equip our staff and users with guidelines to adhere to the province’s requirements. Special thanks to eligible St. Albert residents who have been leaders in vaccination rates (82% fully vaccinated and over 87% for a first dose!), and thank you for everyone’s kindness and patience as we navigate challenges related to the pandemic.

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Last week

Homeland Housing: We met early last week for a meeting to authorize the sale of a property in Morinville. I also continue to meet with the CEO and vice-chair - Last week, we discussed our strategy to ensure candidates in all 13 of our municipalities understand our role and mandate as it relates to affordable and supportive housing.

Local federal election forum: On a more personal note, I attended the virtual election forum featuring our local federal candidates. Thank you to the St. Albert Chamber of Commerce for hosting this important event. Election day is tomorrow and polling information is available on cards mailed to registered voters, or online.

Campaign kick-off: These last four years have flown by! Nominations close at noon on Monday, which means that the municipal race starts full-force starting tomorrow afternoon. I’m humbled by the support, advice, and thoughtful criticism I’ve received over this term. For anyone who would like to support my re-election campaign, lawn-sign sign-ups are live, and donations can be made online or in-person. Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to follow my Council updates over the last four years - These posts have been a part of my commitment to transparency, and I’m thankful for the opportunity to serve.