Latest news with #publicHearing
CBC
05-07-2025
- Politics
- CBC
Edmonton public hearing to resume next week, after heated city council exchange
Edmonton city council reluctantly voted to continue a public hearing next week — their vacation period — after Friday evening's debate led to F-bombs being thrown. The marathon meetings have stretched all week, as council reviews its zoning bylaw one year after a major overhaul. On Friday, councillors spoke about work-life balance, with some saying they would be on vacation without internet next week. Then, a heated exchange occurred, after Ward Sspomitapi Coun. Jo-Anne Wright commented about how experienced councillors might have expected the meeting eating into their vacation time. "From what I understand… this is a normal course of business with things ramping up, and I would think that maybe the incumbents would be aware of that," Wright said. Ward sipiwiyiniwak Coun. Sarah Hamilton, who said she'd be away and unable to attend the meeting, swore in her response. "That was so f--king rude. F--k you, Jo-Anne Wright. F--k you," she said. "This is absolutely unacceptable," Mayor Amarjeet Sohi said immediately afterward. Sohi, who chairs council meetings, asked both councillors to withdraw their comments. Both obliged, and Hamilton apologized for using unparliamentary language. If the public hearing did not go ahead next week, council would have to return in the middle of August. One of the major debates is about amending the zoning bylaw to reduce the number of allowable units in mid-block row houses from eight to six. Sohi said Friday that the hundreds of Edmontonians who have spoken about zoning deserve some closure on the issue, and encouraged councillors to vote to continue next week. "This is not an ideal situation, but this is the situation that we are in," he said. "Whichever decision we make, we need to make that decision as soon as possible," he said. "If we go from eight to six units, there will be consequences if we delay that decision by another month-and-a-half." Ward Anirniq Coun. Erin Rutherford said moving the meeting to council's scheduled vacation period puts councillors in a "terrible position." "Quite frankly, we are all burnt out," Rutherford said. "This is one of the most important topics that Edmontonians expect us to have, and the councillors that do not attend will be questioned as to why they are not prioritizing this," she said. The motion to continue on July 8 carried 9-4. Councillors Hamilton, Tim Cartmell, Karen Principe and Jennifer Rice opposed.
CBC
26-06-2025
- Business
- CBC
Future of downtown development to be debated over 2 days at Edmonton public hearing
Social Sharing Dozens of Edmontonians will be sharing their opinions on the future of downtown development as a two-day public hearing kicks off Thursday morning at city hall. According to the Office of the City Clerk, as of 4 p.m. Wednesday, 72 people had registered to speak at the special public hearing on whether city council should extend the downtown Community Revitalization Levy (CRL) by 10 years. CRLs, which allow cities to borrow money against future property tax revenues, are a way to finance development in places where revitalization might not otherwise happen. When property values within a CRL area increase, a municipality can use the additional taxes to pay down the cost of borrowing for special projects there. Edmonton has three CRLs, and the downtown one — established in 2015 — is set to expire in 2034. City officials say extending it by a decade would allow the city to fund more projects and implement a downtown action plan. The terms of the extension, and who stands to benefit from public and private investments in the core, have become contentious — and there are millions of dollars at stake. The extension's supporters are calling it a "generational opportunity" to improve the city without raising taxes while critics are questioning why a privately-run event park should be included in the deal. What's new in the plan? The extension would add some new projects to a list that includes already completed ones like the downtown arena, community rink and Alex Decoteau Park. Infrastructure for new housing in Ice District, expanding the Winspear Centre, improving LRT entrances, brownfield remediation and the event park are among the additions. The province, the City of Edmonton and OEG Sports and Entertainment announced earlier this year that they were closing in on a deal that included a new all-season event park. The province would pay $97 million and OEG would pay $84 million with the remainder — $69 million — coming from the City of Edmonton through the CRL extension. The current CRL also has a number of projects that are in progress, like Warehouse Park, north of Jasper Avenue, between 106 and 108 Streets, and a pedway on 103A Avenue. Has the CRL worked? A recent city report says the CRL has attracted new investment and spurred development downtown to the tune of $4.7 billion. "I think that the CRL makes sense to a lot of proponents because it's worked with the arena project before, and so it's seen as a continuation of that," said Dan Mason, a sport management professor at the University of Alberta who consulted on the arena deal but has no involvement in the extension. The city report said the CRL brought three new office towers and thousands of new residential units downtown. Edmonton Mayor Amarjeet Sohi said he's keeping his mind open but the CRL has helped transform downtown — and there is still more work to do. "We may not be where other downtowns are in North America, but we are on the path to do so and things are getting better and we just cannot lose momentum," he said at a news conference Tuesday. Though downtown generates less property tax revenue than it used to for the city, Sohi said reversing that trend would benefit all Edmontonians. Sohi also said investors consider the state of a city's downtown as a factor when deciding where to bring their business. Who benefits? Some downtown business groups and organizations — like the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce, the Edmonton Downtown Business Association and the Downtown Revitalization Coalition — are urging city councillors to support the extension. They say the CRL isn't just about improving downtown but strengthening the entire city's economy and infrastructure. "From housing to transit to public safety, the CRL enables a more livable and investable city without raising taxes," the groups said in a June 20 news release. Some of the CRL extension's critics are zeroing in on the event park as a reason not to support it. The event park would be a city-owned facility east of Rogers Place, with space for more than 6,000 people outside and more than 2,500 inside. While the city would own the facility, it would be privately run, with one-third of booking time or space available for community groups and non-profits at below-market rates. A report submitted to the city from OEG said the new venue would help fill a gap in the market and bring customers to downtown businesses. Councillors asked administration to have the company's economic benefit estimates independently assessed. The city's analysis concluded the company's assumptions around economic impact were fair and reasonable. Mason, the U of A professor, said it all boils down to whether investing in the event park and the other proposed developments is the best way to achieve downtown revitalization. "The argument is over whether or not this type of development and these types of subsidies warrant that kind of investment or whether that money could be spent on something else that could also lead to this kind of conclusion," he said. Chelsea Tessier, co-owner and head brewer at Polyrhythm Brewing, north of downtown, said she likes the CRL as a model but she and her partner don't support the structure of the proposed extension. "We'd like to see more diversity and these funds being spread out around downtown," she said. She said other small business owners feel the same and would like to see other parts of the city revitalized. Other business owners and organizations have shared arguments for and against the extension with CBC News this week. Sylvester Borowka, who owns the restaurant Continental Treat, said he supports it because it could lead to increased foot traffic downtown and strengthen community. Several city councillors have criticized parts of the deal.
Yahoo
07-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Standoff over red flag hearing continues in Maine Legislature, may go to court
Jun. 6—A partisan standoff over whether to hold a public hearing on a citizen-initiated red flag referendum is likely to stretch into next week's legislative sessions and could wind up in court. Senate Minority Leader Trey Stewart, R-Presque Isle, tried late Thursday to force Democrats to schedule a public hearing on the referendum, proposing a series of floor motions in the Senate, all of which were rejected. He said Friday that he intends to introduce additional motions next week if Democrats still haven't agreed to hold a hearing on the initiative. "I don't think this thing is over yet," Stewart said. "If I had to wager a bet, there are some other motions I'm intending to make when we get back next week, assuming they still haven't done the right thing." The red flag proposal, if passed by voters, would make it easier to confiscate the guns of a person in crisis by allowing family members to initiate the process and by removing a required mental health evaluation. The proposal came forward in the wake of the mass shooting in Lewiston in October 2023 and is certain to generate intense debate over gun rights and restrictions ahead of the November vote. Meanwhile, the impasse over a public hearing on the proposal has added to tensions at the State House as lawmakers are in the busy final days of the legislative session. Republicans point to a 2019 law that requires public hearings for citizen initiatives that are headed toward statewide referendum votes, unless lawmakers formally vote to waive the requirement. Such hearings have been held on other citizen proposals, but not all: A 2021 citizen initiative never received a hearing or the required waiver and was still sent to referendum and passed by voters. Democrats have so far not backed down, arguing in part that the Maine Constitution does not require the hearing and also citing legislative rules. Gun rights supporters who are opposed to the referendum proposal are pointing to the state law and threatening legal action against Democratic leaders, with one top advocate saying Friday that they have attorneys drafting a lawsuit. "When there's a state law on the books the Legislature can't just ignore it, so that will be the basis for the challenge," said David Trahan, executive director of the Sportsmen's Alliance of Maine, an advocacy group for gun owners and sportsmen that is working on the lawsuit. Nacole Palmer, executive director of the Maine Gun Safety Coalition, which initiated the citizen's referendum, said in a written statement Friday that the group is "happy to debate this issue any time" and accused Republicans of playing "political tricks" by waiting until the end of the session to raise questions. "Now the National Rifle Association has joined them, parachuting into our state to muddy our Democratic process," Palmer said. "While they are doing that, we are focusing on the next five months, where we will be having this conversation publicly, talking to voters throughout the state, and in November every Maine voter will have the chance to make their voices heard." Citizens initiatives are brought forward by voters though a signature-gathering and application process. While the Legislature can choose to enact the proposals, they typically send them to statewide referendum votes. Maine's Legislature held a public hearing last month on the only other citizen initiative currently pending. That proposal would require photo identification prior to voting in Maine and put new restrictions on absentee voting. It also is headed for a fall referendum vote. Lawmakers also held a public hearing last year on the only citizen-initiated referendum they received in 2024, LD 2232, to limit contributions to political action committees that make independent expenditures. All four citizen initiatives in 2023 also received hearings. Legislative records, however, show that no public hearing or vote to waive the hearing was held for an initiative in 2021 that was aimed at stopping the New England Clean Energy Connect transmission line through western Maine. At a committee work session on that initiative, a legislative analyst did not address whether lawmakers needed to hold a public hearing but did note some unique circumstances. Two weeks after the initiative was handed to the Legislature, lawmakers adjourned and the bill was carried over to a special session. Sen. Dick Bradstreet, R-Vassalboro, the sponsor of the 2019 law to require public hearings, said Friday that the circumstances of the 2021 case were different because lawmakers are supposed to hold the hearing in the same session in which they receive it and in that case they had just received the proposal when they ended up adjourning. He said the reason no hearing was held in 2021 was "kind of a technicality." LD 1378, the bill resulting from the red flag citizen initiative, was transmitted to the Legislature on March 27, during the current session that's scheduled to end June 18. "You really can't compare the two because in this case they're choosing not to have the hearing, even though the legal requirements are there," Bradstreet said. "Before, they could say they weren't in the same session. ... Now they're kind of flouting the law." Bradstreet said he didn't recall any outcry over the lack of a public hearing on the 2021 measure, but said there was less knowledge of the relatively new law at the time. He said he put forward the bill in 2019 because of a handful of initiatives that had been put forward around that time that were generating a lot of advertising. DISCERNING FACT FROM FICTION "I thought, 'How can people discern fact from fiction?'" Bradstreet said. "The only way to do that would be some type of hearing where people could question what the initiative does and what some repercussions would be, and where both sides would have a chance to present their arguments without the propaganda." In a late-night session Thursday, Senate President Mattie Daughtry, D-Brunswick, rejected a proposal from Stewart to consider a formal waiver of the public hearing requirement to comply with state law, saying that his proposal was "not properly before the body." Daughtry said the Legislature's rules take precedence over statutes passed by prior groups of lawmakers regarding legislative proceedings and that Stewart's motion was asking for lawmakers to take an "unnecessary vote" on the citizens initiative. Daughtry also noted that the initiative was still before the Judiciary Committee, where she said it could have further action. A spokesperson for Daughtry and Sen. Anne Carney, D-Cape Elizabeth, the Senate chair of the committee, said Friday that they would not comment on the calls for a public hearing. Rep. Amy Kuhn, D-Falmouth, the House chair of the committee, did not respond to a voicemail message or email. Trahan, from the Sportsmen's Alliance of Maine, said his group in conjunction with Gun Owners of Maine and the National Rifle Association will focus their lawsuit on the 2019 law and argue that lawmakers need to either hold the hearing or vote by a two-thirds majority to waive it. The group is also fundraising to support the effort. Trahan said that just because lawmakers "got away with" not holding a hearing on the 2021 initiative, it does not mean it's not required in the law. "Why don't they just make this easy and hold the public hearing?" he said. "There's nothing to hide. Good public discourse adds to the debate." Copy the Story Link
