Latest news with #TonyCaterina
Global News
08-07-2025
- Politics
- Global News
Edmonton mayoral candidate weighs in on infill debate
Another mayoral candidate is weighing in on how infill housing she be handled in Edmonton. Tony Caterina, a former city councillor, said Monday that he believes the way the city is handling infill housing is not working. He said he thinks the city's current bylaw on such developments should be killed, and the city should go back to how it was handling these developments a year and a half ago. 'Dig down a little deeper, and go through neighbourhood by neighbourhood (and ask), 'Is this appropriate for what you see around you?'' Caterina said. 'This is not appropriate at all. 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 'In many places infill is a good thing, but with this blanket bylaw, it's not just infill, it's infill on steroids.' City council is currently considering capping midblock row housing at a maximum of six units rather than eight. A public hearing started Wednesday and was extended into Friday. Story continues below advertisement City council has now heard from all the speakers and will be asking questions to administration on Tuesday. Caterina said typically when city council is approaching an election like it is this fall, it pushes hot-button issues on to the next council. 'These are big decisions, and for this council to try and push all this through as quickly as possible, before we get a new council and a new mayor, I think this is the wrong thing to do,' he said. 'I think this is going to be the No. 1 issue for this election. It has surpassed high taxes and over-the-top spending.'
Calgary Herald
30-06-2025
- Politics
- Calgary Herald
'Absolute mess': Public put on hold as city council wades through marathon zoning session
Article content 'It's creating false hope in the community or misleading the public.' Article content Even though they were told they were free to go, the majority in the gallery elected to remain. Attendees included mayoral hopeful Tony Caterina and Reed Clarke, who is running for election in Ward Nakota Isga as part of Cartmell's Better Edmonton party. Another Better Edmonton member, Ward papastew's Joshua Doyle, was also there. Article content What council did get to Article content They sat and heard as council addressed another zoning issue, which also has been a hot-button topic in mature neighbourhoods. The zoning bylaw currently states that the city would 'support' small-scale densification developments in existing residential neighbourhoods, even if the projects were outside of the 'nodes and corridors' specified in the City Plan. This led to blowback from community groups concerned that this created a development free-for-all. Article content Article content An amendment on the table would see the city consider upzoning if the development meets two of these conditions: 'In a node or corridor area or within 100 metres of a node or corridor area; within 400 metres of a mass transit station; along an arterial roadway or a collector roadway; at a corner site or adjacent to a park or open space; adjacent to a site zoned for greater than small-scale development.' The proposed change would create some rules for developers to follow. Article content 'It's a good first step,' said John Soltice, a co-founder of Edmonton Neighbourhoods United, 'But it could go further.' Article content Another speaker, Sabina Qureshi, said that she's encouraged that council is 'finally listening' to residents. Article content 'These are the people who live in the neighbourhoods,' she said. 'These are the ones you should listen to. These are the people who elect you.' Article content Article content Like Soltice, Jennifer Faulkner of the Parkallen Community League said the proposal is a first move to prevent 'overbuild neighbourhood capacity.' She's concerned that the zoning bylaw opens the entire Parkallen neighbourhood to redevelopment, when the south side of the community has only one access to an arterial road and can't handle the added capacity. Article content But, there are other considerations at play. While there is no doubt a grassroots movement happening throughout the city's mature neighbourhoods to battle the zoning bylaw, there are investors who have already sunk money into in-progress developments and they worry that changing the rules after just one year pulls the rug out from under their feet. There are also concerns that blocking densification efforts would, eventually, push house prices higher and wreck the affordability advantage that Edmonton has over other major Canadian cities. Article content 'Shifting back to minimizing density after just a year stands to undercut these efforts,' said Kelvin Hamilton, a local architect. Article content Rick Dulat is a developer with more than 20 projects on the go, and seven are in the permitting process. He warned council that changing the rules could result in legal actions against the city. Article content 'This is not how a reliable permitting process works.' he said. Article content 'It's hard not to see the political motivations at play,' said Dulat, a swipe at Cartmell's planned motion to pause infill. Article content Dulat said he's been developing in mature neighbourhoods for a decade. And, he's met resistance. He said signage of a corner-lot development in Crestwood was vandalized with the words 'slum lord.' Article content 'I am really tired. I am exhausted. I face racism. I face vandalism.' Article content A balancing act Article content Coun, Andrew Knack, expected to be Cartmell's main rival for the mayor's chair, said council will strike a balance between the two opposing forces. Article content Article content 'We've been making changes to the zoning bylaw for the last decade and, each time we make changes, there are always going to be some applications that are impacted,' he said. 'We absolutely want to respect (the development industry's) time and attention. We also need to make sure we're listening to the residents that we serve, as well. Article content 'We'll probably debate what the the right time is for this to take effect, and if there are any legal requirements that we have as a city for applications under review.' Article content
CTV News
14-06-2025
- Politics
- CTV News
Affordability, safety and keeping up with growth top topics for Edmonton mayoral candidate Andrew Knack
Edmonton City Councillor Andrew Knack can be seen at his official mayoral campaign launch on May 14, 2025. (Galen McDougall/CTV News Edmonton) Longtime city councillor Andrew Knack officially launched his mayoral campaign on Saturday. The Ward Nakota Isga councillor has spent three terms representing west Edmontonians and said he will focus on making Edmonton safer, more affordable and better at keeping up with population growth. 'We've added 200,000 people into the city in the last four years,' Knack said. 'What does that mean for the infrastructure and services that we need and that people expect in all parts of the city? And so those are the three things I'm hearing about consistently when I'm out across the city.' In September, Knack said he would not be seeking re-election as a city councillor. Then, in May, he announced he would be running for Mayor. Unlike his current co-councillor and mayoral candidate Tim Cartmell, Knack said he would not be affiliating with a new municipal political party. 'I'm going to be running as an independent,' he said. 'I don't want people to feel like they can't be a part of this campaign. I don't care where you are on the political spectrum, I want you to be a part of this movement.' On Saturday, only three mayoral hopefuls had completed the nomination process to become official candidates: Tim Cartmell, Abdul Malik Chukwudi and Omar Mohammad. Former city councillor Tony Caterina has also announced he will run. Current Mayor Amarjeet Sohi has said he won't be seeking re-election in the Oct. 20 municipal election.2 With files from CTV News Edmonton's Alex Antoneshyn
CTV News
04-06-2025
- Business
- CTV News
City councillor running for mayor unveils slate for upcoming Edmonton election
Tim Cartmell, left, the city councillor for Ward pihêsiwin who is running for mayor in the fall of 2025, at the unveiling of his municipal party Better Edmonton's slate of candidates on June 3, 2025. An Edmonton city councillor who will be running for mayor later this year has launched his municipal political party. Tim Cartmell unveiled a slate of candidates who will run in this fall's municipal election, including current city councillor Karen Principe and former Edmonton Police Association president Michael Elliott. Cartmell, who represents Ward pihêsiwin in the city's southwest, said Tuesday he and his slate of candidates will strive to improve public safety, be more financially prudent and develop better construction plans for Edmonton residents. 'You're just going to see more for your money, more of the services that you expect the city to provide, more of what cities are actually supposed to do,' Cartmell told CTV News Edmonton on Tuesday at an event to introduce the Better Edmonton slate. Tony Caterina, an ex-city councillor, and Andrew Knack, a current city councillor who represents Ward Nakota Isga, are also running for mayor as are Abdul-Malik Chukwudi and Omar Mohammad. With files from CTV News Edmonton's Dave Mitchell
CTV News
02-06-2025
- General
- CTV News
Edmonton mayoral candidate pledges collaboration with other levels of government
Edmonton Mayoral Candidate, Tony Caterina, speaks with Alberta Primetime host Michael Higgins about his hopes to return to municipal politics.
