- Edmonton-based soldiers are on their way to flood-ravaged B.C. to help with relief efforts. Minister of National Defence Anita Anand said 350 Canadian Armed Forces personnel were ready to be deployed from Edmonton; 120 members of IRU Vanguard Company were expected to be in Abbotsford by the end of Thursday.
- Improving homeless shelters is worth it because otherwise many prefer to stay in encampments, city staff told the Edmonton Police Commission on Thursday. "Keeping people homeless is very expensive," said Christel Kjenner, the city's director of housing and homelessness, who presented a report on minimum emergency shelter standards. "It's just that the costs are being externalized for the community and to other systems, whether that's the emergency rooms or the police."
- The police commission also heard about a spike in hate-motivated crimes in 2021, with 97 recorded so far in 2021. The Edmonton Police Service acknowledged in its community feedback report that members should be more sensitive when racialized people report hate crimes.
- The city decided not to privatize bus cleaning and refuelling, preserving more than 100 unionized jobs. Eddie Robar, the branch manager for fleet and facility services, told Postmedia the $1.2 million that was to be saved by contracting out will be found through other efficiencies. The Amalgamated Transit Union Local 569 celebrated the win as negotiations continue on their contract.
Headlines
By Karen Unland