Council meets on Tuesday. We’ll be meeting over video conference. On the agenda:

Supportive Housing: a potential project in South Avondale
Electric Vehicle Charging Network
A Bus Donation to PARDS
2021 Tax Rates
Revolution Place Enhancements
Cellular 911 Fees

Following is more information and my take on agenda items.

As always, any mistakes or opinions belong to me and me alone, not to Council or City staff.

While I express my current views below, I work hard to go into meetings ready to listen and with an open mind. I learn new information and participate in debate. This always informs, and sometimes changes, how I vote on issues.

If you would like to watch the meeting or read any of its supporting material for yourself, you can do so by clicking here. The City will post the highlights of Council’s decisions here.

SUPPORTIVE HOUSING

Supportive housing is a big need in our community.

There are people in our community who do not have stable housing, and who require medical care and support from social workers to maintain a place to live. Without proper housing and supports, they often end up living in shelters or on the street. It isn’t a good life for them. It often creates negative impacts on the wider community. And, since they tend to interact with the hospital and emergency services frequently, a lot of taxpayer money is spent on them.

In Grande Prairie, 104 people have been identified as requiring housing and support that is not currently available in our community.

The City is currently lobbying the province to help fund and to provide medical support to a new supportive housing building. It would be custom built to both provide appropriate housing for the people living in it, and to minimize impacts on the surrounding community. It would be managed by the Grande Spirit Foundation, and would have on-site medical support provided by Alberta Health Services. Here is a snapshot of what this project might look like:

For this project to get potential support, the City needs to provide land and some funding. On Monday, there are two recommendations from Council:

Commit $400,000 to this project. This would come from an Affordable Housing fund which has been previously set aside by Council. It is already accounted for in our budgets.
Designate a block of land. The City owns property on 105 Ave, just west of 100 St (behind Circle K in South Avondale). This was purchased with provincial funding for supportive housing. It is recommended that Council designate it to be used with this project.

It’s important to note that if Council approves these recommendations, that does not necessarily mean this project will move forward. It will still need to receive financial commitment from the province. Additionally, the land in question is not currently zoned for supportive housing. It will need to go through a re-zoning process that includes public hearings.

I intend to support the recommendations being made on Monday. Supportive housing is a clear need in our community. It is also an investment that will save taxpayers in the long-term. Setting aside City funding and going after provincial support for a new project in our community makes sense.

That being said: I look forward to public hearings attached to re-zoning this land. Deciding whether or not this is an appropriate location for the project will be an interesting and important conversation.

ELECTRIC VEHICLE CHARGING NETWORK

The town of Edson has asked the City to participate in helping develop a plan for a Northwest Alberta Vehicle Charging Network. It is recommended that Council endorse the formation of a plan, and provide up to $1,000 towards its costs.

I intend to support this recommendation. Having an electric vehicle network in Northwest Alberta could be a good contributor to our economy, especially for tourism. I think that private industry should bear most of the costs to develop it. But some early and modest government participation to help plan it is appropriate. And endorsement plus $1000 is a very modest investment from City Council.

PARDS

Peace Area Riding for the Disabled Society does very important therapeutic work for people with disabilities. To get kids to and from its programs, it owns an accessible bus. However, PARDS’ bus is near the end of its life: needed repairs are making it cost prohibitive to run.

PARDS has asked for the City to donate one of its Accessible Transit buses. It isn’t asking for a new bus, but for one that is surplus to the City due to being older. Administration has identified a unit that will be removed from service soon. It is recommended that Council direct that this bus get given to PARDS rather than be auctioned off.

I will be supporting this recommendation. I highly value the work that PARDS does in our community, and this is a logical way to support it.

REVOLUTION PLACE

As part of its response to COVID-19, Council has increased its capital budget for 2020. This is primarily meant to provide economic stimulus. It is also a good time to get projects done while their costs are down.

Millions of extra dollars are being put into roads. However, effort was also made to find projects that aren’t road related to help stimulate other industries. One project: $544,000 was set aside to revitalize Revolution Place. On Monday, Council will be discussing the projects that are proposed to be completed with this funding. They include:

Paint lobby spaces
Upgrade centre gate and lobby concessions to bring them up to current code and make them far more efficient
Lower box office desks to make them accessible to people in wheelchairs

I’m definitely going into this discussion with a very open mind. But I’m currently likely to support these recommendations. They’ll enhance the space, and now is a time where it makes sense to do work on it.

2021 TAX RATE

Council will set the 2021 budget in November. City Administration is currently on the early stages of forming the recommendations it will make to Council. It has requested that Council give an early indication of what type of tax change it would like to see in 2021.

Over this current Council’s term, the municipal taxes on an average home have fallen by 1%.

Something worth highlighting: taxes have gone down. But inflation has driven up many costs for the City. In addition, in 2020, the federal and provincial governments have forced the City to absorb about $4,000,000 in changes. In response, the City has significantly tightened its spending. If it had continued “business as usual” and passed increased costs onto taxpayers, this is where taxes would’ve gone this term:

The Corporate Services Committee has recommended that Council set a budget target that would see an average residential property have its tax bill increase by 2% (the likely rate of inflation).

I’m unlikely to support this recommendation.

I’d like to see us keep any tax increases at 1% or less. That would mean that our Council would’ve held the line on taxes throughout its term. I really think that that is possible without clawing back services that greatly contribute to residents’ quality of life.

If you want to know more about how municipal property taxes work, you can checkout these two short videos:

CELLULAR 911 FEES

It has been recommended that Council submit a Resolution to the Alberta Urban Municipalities Association (AUMA) regarding 911 Fees. If Council does submit this Resolution, it will be voted on by AUMA members in the fall. If those members vote to endorse it, it would become part of AUMA’s advocacy to the province.

This Resolution would ask the province to increase the 911 fees that appear on monthly cell phone bills from 44 cents to 97 cents. This money would be used to upgrade 911 call centers with new technology that is required by the federal government.

I intend to support this Resolution.

The City operates a 911 call center which serves a large portion of the province, not just City residents. The federal government is requiring technology upgrades that could cost up to $700,000. If this money isn’t recovered through cell phone levies, then City taxpayers will have to fund it. That would be an unnecessary subsidy our residents would be giving to residents of other municipalities.

NON-PROFIT LOANS

The City has given loans to several community non-profit groups. These loans include:

Army, Navy and Airforce Veterans (ANAVETS): $26,821 issued in 2016 to be paid back over 5 years with 0% interest
The Storm: $200,000 issues in 2019 to be paid over 5 years at 4.25% interest (you can read more about this loan here)

Both organisations have requested deferral of their loans in light of COVID-19’s impacts on their revenues.

The Corporate Services Committee has recommended that Council forgive the ANAVETS loan. I’m unlikely to support this recommendation. I’m all for supporting the ANAVETS. However, they did not request forgiveness (only deferral) and our Community Group Funding is tight right now. If we are going to consider forgiveness: that should only be at the request of the group, and considered alongside other community funding requests. However, I am fully supportive of deferring their loan if Council does not forgive it.

It has also been recommended that Council defer the Storm’s loan for 6 months. This loan would continue to generate interest while deferred. I intend to support this recommendation.

That’s what is on our agenda for Monday. I’d love to hear your thoughts.

You can comment below. Or, you can contact me at dbressey@cityofgp.com or 780-402-4166. I'm happy to talk online or over the phone. I'm also always willing to setup a time to meet for coffee.

We also always have great conversation in the GP Round Table group on Facebook.

After Council meeting, you will be able to find highlights posted by the City here.

Thanks for reading!

-Dylan

Coming Up: June 13