Latest news with #AlbertaMunicipalities
Global News
19-06-2025
- Politics
- Global News
Calgary community explores restrictive covenants as citywide rezoning hits campaign trail
The majority of candidates vying to be Calgary's next mayor are vowing to repeal citywide rezoning, as another neighbourhood explores restrictive covenants as an option to block development spurred by the policy. A restrictive covenant is a legally binding agreement on a property title that limits how a property is used or developed, even after it is sold to a new owner. Restrictive covenants are frequently used by municipalities, developers, and landowners to ensure land is developed in a manner that maintains or enhances the value of neighbouring properties, according to Alberta Municipalities. 1:54 Glenora restrictive covenant creates headache for Edmonton homeowner Former city councillor Jeromy Farkas, running for mayor a second time, unveiled his housing platform Wednesday. Story continues below advertisement The 25-point plan includes the creation of a renter support office, the streamlined approval for family-oriented housing, protection for park space and prioritizes transit-oriented development. The first policy point is to 'repeal and replace blanket rezoning,' with a more targeted community strategy that 'supports gentle density' while building a more affordable homes. 'It's very clear that this blanket rezoning, all-size-fits-all approach hasn't worked. It hasn't been able to build the homes at the scale or the speed or the price point that's needed,' Farkas told Global News. 'We think that we can get more homes built more cost effectively and faster with that targeted approach.' Farkas becomes the latest mayoral candidate to promise scrapping the citywide rezoning policy along with Communities First candidate and Ward 1 Coun. Sonya Sharp and former city councillor Jeff Davison. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy 'We have to rebuild trust with the public and we've got to repeal that bylaw,' Davison told Global News. 'We've got to work with all stakeholders to say, 'What's the plan? What do we want as a housing initiative going forward for Calgary and what works for Calgarians?'' Farkas' promise to repeal citywide rezoning prompted a response from Ward 8 Coun. Courtney Walcott, who is not running for re-election. 'Seeing prominent candidates and parties retreat to policies of exclusionary zoning, discrimination, and economic segregation under the guise of 'progress' and 'compassion' is painful,' Walcott wrote on social media. Story continues below advertisement 'Have some courage, it might just inspire people.' Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "Have some courage, it might just inspire people." Calgary city council voted in favour of a bylaw to change the city's default residential zoning last year, which amended the land-use bylaw to allow a variety of housing types including single-detached, semi-detached, duplexes and rowhouses on a single property. The move followed a record public hearing at city hall in which the majority of speakers opposed the policy change. 1:50 Fight over Calgary zoning changes heads to court Experts suggest it's those frustrated Calgarians that candidates against citywide rezoning are trying to tap into. 'Those folks are motivated, they're going to donate, they're going to volunteer, they are going to come out and vote, and it may be that in some places, this is an issue that really gets voters out,' said Lori Williams, an associate professor of policy studies at Mount-Royal University. Story continues below advertisement 'It's also tricky when you're a mayoral candidate, because you've got to appeal to people throughout the city.' That frustration is coming to a head in the southwest community of Lakeview, where a group of residents is pushing to have neighbours sign restrictive covenants on their properties. According to Keith Marlowe with the Lakeview Restrictive Covenant Initiative, the effort was spurred by city council's decision and three recent developments in the area. 'I think that's what is getting people's backs up. The community was very strong that they didn't want upzoning and that was seemingly ignored for whatever reason by city council,' Marlowe said. Marlowe said the restrictive covenant would remain on a property's title for 75 years. 'We're all voluntarily agreeing to put certain restrictions on our own ability to develop our property in the hopes that it helps our neighbours as well,' he said. When asked about Lakeview's push for restrictive covenants on Tuesday, Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek said property owners can do what they want with their own properties. 'Anytime there's an individual that's interested in doing something with their private property, it's something that's up to that individual,' Gondek said. 'Individuals are able to do what they choose with their properties as long as it abides with any given bylaw and within the rules of the law.' Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "Individuals are able to do what they choose with their properties as long as it abides with any given bylaw and within the rules of the law." Story continues below advertisement 2:22 Calgary's city-wide rezoning proposal: what does RC-G look like? According to the city, citywide rezoning has 'significantly increased the diversity and supply of housing options in Calgary.' City data shows 271 applications were submitted for new homes in established communities in the first quarter of 2025, a 59-per cent increase over the same time period last year. Thirty-one per cent of those applications were rowhouses and townhomes, a 163-per cent increase from the same quarter in 2024. A city briefing note into the matter also suggests citywide rezoning enabled nearly half or 45 per cent of all new low-density housing development permits in established neighbourhoods. Calgary's next municipal election is on Oct. 20.
CBC
30-04-2025
- Business
- CBC
City council approves 5.7% tax increase, wants education levy split from property tax
Edmonton city council finalized the municipal property tax increase at 5.7 per cent Wednesday, while council members pointed fingers at the province for an increase in its education tax. Council passed a motion on Wednesday to have city administration work with Alberta Municipalities to explore how to separate the provincial education tax collection from municipal property tax. The motion was put forward by Coun. Michael Janz and passed 9-4 with Tim Cartmell, Sarah Hamilton, Karen Principe and Jennifer Rice voting against the motion. The motion initially included another directive that Mayor Amarjeet Sohi send an invoice to the Alberta government for the entire education property tax collection cost but it was struck from the motion before the final vote. "We frequently get told to stay in our lane, and I'm growing increasingly frustrated that we are, as municipalities, kind of the proverbial punching bag," Janz told council. "We've been advocating for the province to pay their grants in lieu of taxes. We've been advocating for the province to pay a number of things that are costs that we bear for them." Education tax In Canada, public education is the responsibility of provincial governments. The provincial education portion of property taxes, about $98 per month or 25 per cent of the total property tax bill for a typical single detached property, goes to fund schools in Alberta, according to the City of Edmonton. The municipal and provincial education taxes change at different rates each year, and are added together to make up the total tax amount property owners must pay. The tax makes up 29 per cent of the education operating budget. But the provincial government has said it wants to raise the tax so it would make up 31.5 per cent of that funding in fiscal 2025 and 33 per cent in fiscal 2026. Sohi said he wants the financial breakdown to be clear for Edmontonians. "The principle should be, the government responsible for taxing people should be sending them the bill to collect that tax, not another order of government," Sohi said. "We are required to collect taxes on behalf of the province that directly go to the province, but city council gets the blame for that tax, particularly at a time when people are struggling with the affordability crisis." CBC has requested further comment from the Ministry of Municipal Affairs. Tax increase With the 5.7 per cent increase, a homeowner will pay about $763 in municipal taxes in 2025 for every $100,000 of assessed home value, an increase of $51 from 2024. The median assessed value for a home in Edmonton is $465,500 this year, which would have a $3,550 bill in annual property taxes. "Eighty per cent of the services that people consume on a daily basis are delivered with that $3,550 that we collect to run a municipality. But people don't make that distinction, that one-quarter goes to the province," Sohi said. Property taxes in 2025 will generate more than $2.2 billion to fund the 70 city services, including parks, trails, roads, bridges, transit, recreation centres, attractions, emergency services and social supports. The 5.7 per cent increase is lower than the 6.1 per cent increase that council approved in December. Council's motion will be brought forward as a resolution during Alberta Municipalities's fall convention this year.
CBC
14-04-2025
- Politics
- CBC
Do Alberta municipalities want a provincial police force?
The Alberta government has introduced new legislation to amend the Police Act, making it easier to establish a provincial police force. Alberta Municipalities president Tyler Gandam joins Edmonton AM's Mark Connolly to discuss whether it's the solution to emergency response times and other issues facing policing in small municipalities.
CBC
14-04-2025
- Politics
- CBC
A testicular cancer survivor shares his story
The Alberta government has introduced new legislation to amend the Police Act, making it easier to establish a provincial police force. Alberta Municipalities president Tyler Gandam joins Edmonton AM's Mark Connolly to discuss whether or not this is the solution to emergency response times and other issues facing policing in small municipalities across the province.
CBC
09-04-2025
- Politics
- CBC
Alberta government moves to eliminate municipal codes of conduct
Social Sharing Alberta Municipal Affairs minister Ric McIver introduced a new bill Tuesday that would automatically repeal all municipal codes of conduct as soon as it is proclaimed into law. Bill 50, the Municipal Affairs Statutes Amendment Act, proposes changes to three existing laws: Local Authorities Election Act, the Municipal Government Act, and the New Home Buyer Protection Act. Amendments to the Municipal Government Act in early 2015 compelled municipal councils across Alberta to pass codes of conduct by 2018. But McIver said they have since become a tool for councillors to target other members of council. "Most municipalities get along just fine and behave well and serve their citizens without a whole bunch of interpersonal drama," he said at a news conference Tuesday. "But there's been more than enough instances of people using the bylaws as weapons, weaponizing them, if you will, and they're trying to silence people that disagree with them that are on council." McIver is proposing an external third party, like an ethics or integrity commissioner, become the arbiter of breaches but he wants to consult with municipalities first. Such a change would also relieve the chief administrative officers of municipalities of the responsibility of having to resolve disputes. McIver said the current situation puts these officials in an awkward position because they are hired, evaluated and can be fired by councillors. "It's not a fair position to put them in," he said. "So we're going to try to fix that too." Other measures in the bill include a change that would allow municipal political parties to share campaign funding with their candidates and compel them to disclose their donors before election day in October. The bill also proposes a temporary measure to allow Jasper residents to vote or run in the municipal election even while they are displaced by last summer's wildfire. The government plans to keep these amendments in place for the fall municipal election and through 2026 just in case there is a byelection. The provision is to expire by Dec. 31, 2026. Political donation disclosure The proposal to eliminate municipal codes of conduct follows some high-profile cases where councillors used the rules against another council member. Last year, Linnsie Clark, the mayor of Medicine Hat, was stripped of some of her powers and given a pay cut for failing to treat the city manager with "courtesy, dignity and respect" at a council meeting in 2023. A Court of King's Bench judge later ruled that the sanctions were not in proportion to her code of conduct breaches and reversed most of them. Last year, members of Alberta Municipalities passed a resolution moved by the Town of Rocky Mountain House to set up an independent office of integrity to investigate code of conduct breaches. Edmonton Coun. Andrew Knack is concerned that there will be a period of time between the repeal of the codes of conduct and the enactment of what replaces them. "I don't want to be closed-minded to it," he said. "If they have a good system that has clear standards across the province, then that might actually be a really good thing. I want to give him the benefit of the doubt on this particular issue." Knack is more concerned with the rules for candidate donation disclosures. While Bill 50 will require political parties to disclose their donations before the election, there isn't a similar provision for individual candidates or third-party advertisers. Knack said the new system imposed by the province hurts candidates who choose to run independently. He says political parties can still get more donations from corporations and numbered companies.
