On the agenda: Meeting rules, downtown rezoning, board appointments

This week, Edmonton city council is set to discuss proposed changes to its procedures bylaw, an application to rezone a unique parcel of land downtown, and who it will appoint to various boards and committees.

There is a public hearing scheduled for Aug. 19 and a city council meeting scheduled for Aug. 20 and 21.

Here are key items on this week's agenda:

• Councillors may have to appear on camera when participating virtually in meetings, should amendments to the council procedures bylaw be approved at a meeting on Aug. 20. Administration said while virtual participation allows councillors more flexibility, it can also make verifying confidentiality difficult and get in the way of residents being able to observe elected officials during public meetings. If council passes the bylaw, councillors will be required to appear on camera without a virtual background when speaking or asking questions. Another amendment would change the day administration releases reports linked to council's agenda to the public. Currently, the reports are released 10 days in advance of a meeting. Administration now recommends this to be changed to the Thursday before the meeting. The 10-day rule was introduced in 2021 to allow councillors and the public more time to review the documents. But administration said reports released on this timeline are often incomplete, and that information is added shortly before meetings. Administration said it will distribute reports in advance of the new timeline if it anticipates the report will generate significant public interest. It said it would do so using an agenda of an earlier meeting. The Edmonton Chamber of Commerce has started a letter-writing campaign to pressure council to refuse the proposed changes. The chamber said the change would make it harder for Edmontonians to stay informed, for the news media to report on city council, and for non-profit organizations to advocate effectively.
• F&F Holdings has applied to rezone a narrow parcel of land downtown located west of 109 Street between 99 Avenue and the alleyway south of Jasper Avenue. The current zoning allows for buildings on the property to be as tall as 20 metres, or about four storeys. The applicant wants to increase the maximum height on the parcel north of 100 Avenue to 70 metres, or about 20 storeys, and the maximum height south of 100 Avenue to 50 metres, or about 15 storeys. These heights are the same as those allowed on the lots across 109 Street. Some nearby residents oppose the rezoning. They said buildings this tall will reduce privacy, views, and sunlight, and that more density will increase traffic congestion. Council is scheduled to debate the rezoning at a public hearing on Aug. 19.
• Council will meet in private to discuss new appointments to the City of Edmonton Youth Council, Fort Edmonton Management Company, Alberta Municipalities, Edmonton Police Commission, and Federation of Canadian Municipalities.

Here are some other items on the agenda:

• Council may meet fewer times in 2025 than it will in 2024 due to the municipal election, pending council approval. Administration has drafted the 2025 council and committee meeting calendar, with one main change being that no regular meetings can be scheduled during the municipal election period from Sept. 22 to Oct. 24, 2025.
• Council is set to discuss a financial assistance program for businesses affected by major construction. Council's executive committee debated the program at a meeting on Aug. 14, and the committee sent the report to council for discussion without recommendations. Administration does not support the idea, and said financial support would be provided after losses occur and may not help in time. The assistance program would also assume that construction was responsible for any financial loss rather than external factors like changing market conditions, increasing costs, or inefficient business models. City staff estimate the program would cost $225,000 per 100 businesses, plus $200,000 in administrative expenses. Administration has also presented the option of establishing a grant program, where the city would proactively give money to businesses near major construction projects.
• The owner of the historic Brighton Block has applied to rezone the property to allow for more uses on it, including cannabis stores, indoor self-storage, special events, and urban agriculture. Council is set to vote on the rezoning at a public hearing on Aug. 19.
• Four single-family houses on a land parcel near the Bonnie Doon LRT station could be demolished to make way for a six-storey residential building, if a rezoning application is approved at a public hearing on Aug. 19. The parcel, located east of 83 Street NW on 82 Avenue NW, is currently zoned to allow up to a three-storey building. Administration supports the application given the property's proximity to transit, open space, schools, and shops.
• Administration recommends council deny an application to rezone a property in Rundle Heights. The landowner of a single-family home at 3104 102 Avenue NW has applied to rezone the property to allow for a building of between three and four storeys. In a report, administration said the lot is not suitable for a multi-unit building, given it is not located within a node or corridor as identified in the city's district plans, and it is not close enough to transit or a large roadway.
• Coun. Aaron Paquette will introduce a motion that asks administration to provide a report on Blatchford. Paquette will ask for the report to include a full status of the progress of sales and development in Blatchford, and options to accelerate development.

Meetings stream live on YouTube on the Chamber channel and River Valley Room channel.