- The province has announced it will match federal funding to support transit operations, with $79.5 million for transit systems in Alberta. It's unclear how much of the $159 million total will be allocated to Edmonton, but Mayor Amarjeet Sohi said it would be "a significant amount." The city had asked for $41 million in the provincial budget for transit, but that was not funded. "This funding will mean that Edmonton will be able to ensure our transit ridership rates return to their pre-pandemic numbers by 2024, making us the first municipality to accomplish this economy-boosting goal," Sohi tweeted.
- The Edmonton Police Service has introduced three new community councils to provide input to Chief Dale McFee and to improve relationships between community and police. "These councils aren't just checking a box," McFee told Global News. No budget has been allocated to the councils.
- Coun. Michael Janz wants the city to explore a licensing system for landlords alongside rental regulations and standards in an effort to help level the playing field between landlords and prospective tenants and to deal with problem landlords. A licensing system could also reduce the number of landlord-tenant disputes — more than 10,000 such complaints are processed each year by the province. "It's about a systemic look. The same way we do licensing for vehicles for hire...for restaurants. It's about setting and raising the bar and bringing in a better standard," Janz said.
- Janz also wrote a blog post about curbing "excessive executive compensation" paid to senior executives and board members at EPCOR. According to figures obtained by Janz, president and CEO Stuart Lee earned more than $2.2 million in compensation in 2020. "It is important to remember that every dollar spent on compensation is another dollar that could be returned to the City of Edmonton as a dividend," he wrote. EPCOR board chair Janice Rennie said in a statement to Postmedia that executive pay is reviewed every year by an independent third party.
- On Friday, the City of Edmonton and Enoch Cree Nation celebrated the five-year anniversary of a memorandum of understanding signed to support the collaborative partnership between the two jurisdictions. "In the last five years, we have set the foundation for the next 50 years for Edmonton Enoch future leaders," said Chief Billy Morin, Enoch Cree Nation. "This MOU highlights the spirit and intent of Treaty Six."
- Coun. Ashley Salvador reported over the weekend that the new permanent railing on the Ada Boulevard bridge has been installed. When the upgraded bridge opened last fall, residents expressed safety concerns about the lack of a railing on the south side. A temporary railing was installed a week later while the permanent railing was fabricated.
- Sportsnet reports that Edmonton could be a potential host for the NHL Heritage Classic in 2023-2024, to mark the 20th anniversary of the game between the Edmonton Oilers and Montreal Canadiens that took place at Commonwealth Stadium on Nov. 22, 2003 with 57,000 fans in attendance.
