The Pulse: Nov. 14, 2022

The city councillor representing Edmonton's core is happy with the way funding for the Downtown Vibrancy Strategy has been spent so far, but would like to see future funds go towards more permanent initiatives.

The Downtown Vibrancy Strategy Funding Program awarded more than $4.9 million to 53 projects in 2021 and 2022. A list of 31 of those projects obtained by Taproot indicates the money was spent on a mix of perennial events, new events, crisis intervention, business supports, and efforts to explore revitalization.

"I think the downtown vibrancy strategy funding has been really successful in a lot of ways," said Coun. Anne Stevenson, who represents Ward O-day'min. "I think that there was a good balance of festivals and animation, the fun activities, and also some good focus on the community safety and well-being projects as well."

Of the $2 million shown to be allocated as of Oct. 20, $1.25 million was spent on festivals. Public safety measures received almost $311,000; business supports got just over $187,000; cultural activities received a bit more than $164,000; and conferences received almost $93,000.

Another 22 projects worth about $3 million have been awarded funding, but the agreements had not yet been finalized, so the city didn't reveal what they are.

With the focus on reviving the downturn caused by COVID-19, many of the funded projects were short-lived events or limited programs. With $5.2 million set aside as an ongoing grant for downtown vibrancy in the city's operating budget for 2023-2026, Stevenson hopes to see the money go to more lasting initiatives in the future.

"There aren't a lot of permanent installations or permanent changes to the physical infrastructure of downtown (in the vibrancy strategy)," she said. "So that would certainly be something I'd be looking for in the next round or in the upcoming announcements – permanently installed art installations or other art projects that leave that lasting benefit and animation to the downtown beyond just specific activities and events."

• Heritage Festival will temporarily relocate to the city's Exhibition Lands and Borden Park from 2023-25 while Hawrelak Park is closed for rehabilitation work. The Edmonton Heritage Festival Association said the move comes with an agreement with the city for incremental cost coverage and improved site access, along with a guarantee the festival can return to Hawrelak Park once it reopens. "We look forward to celebrating our 50th anniversary in our temporary home with our partners in Edmonton's cultural communities and with our new site partners at Explore Edmonton and the City of Edmonton," said association president Robert Rohatyn.
• A new report from city administration suggests hiring two teams of five peace officers to deal with excessive vehicle noise, at an estimated cost of $1.6 million annually. Currently, about 20 peace officers monitor vehicle noise as part of their regular duties. According to the report, noise complaints have increased dramatically in recent years, from 150 in 2019 to 770 in 2020, and 1,028 in 2021. Coun. Michael Janz said the city should increase the bylaw fine to $1,000 to help offset the cost of enforcement. "This constant abuse by a small group of Edmontonians who are modifying their cars to make them even noisier and even more annoying, it's completely unacceptable," Janz said. "It's about time we have enforcement and let's stick them with the bill for it."
• More than 20,000 students missed school because of illness on Nov. 9, according to data released by Edmonton Public Schools. The school board has called an emergency meeting for Nov. 15 to ask provincial health officials how many students need to be sick before additional health measures are considered. "We are not considering a mask mandate as we continue to believe that decisions related to health need to be made by the chief medical officer of health and Alberta Health Services," school board chair Trisha Estabrooks told CBC.
• The city's waste services utility rate filing proposes a 0.9% increase to residential garbage pickup rates in 2023 and 2024. If council approves the proposal, total rates would increase by about $5 to $15 annually for the three bin sizes, while communal collection rates would increase by $0.28 monthly. "The increase will be used to support new programs, such as introducing food scraps sorting in apartments and condos, and address rising operational costs due to inflation," Keith Knoblauch, finance director for waste services, told Postmedia. The proposed increase follows two years of freezes.
• An Edmonton couple spent two decades and $70,000 on a net-zero renovation of their 1969 Kilkenny area bungalow. Darren and Darcy Crichton began with a project to better insulate the home, but it later turned into a major effort to reduce the home's carbon footprint. The couple said they received subsidies to compensate for some of the renovation's cost and did most of the work on their own. "We strongly believe that climate change is negatively impacting us," Darcy Crichton said in an interview with CBC Radio Active. "We became aware that really, there were things we could do that actually made our lives better and also contributed less to climate change."
• Flair Airlines has named Hall D at the Edmonton Expo Centre The Hangar after a five-year deal for the naming rights to the arena, which is home to the Edmonton Stingers basketball team. "It's an exciting time to be engaged in basketball in this country, and we couldn't be happier to have Flair join us," Stingers president Reed Clarke said. The arena is also in the final stages of a multi-million dollar renovation, which includes new seats for spectators.
• The city's subdivision and development appeal board held a hearing on Nov. 10 to hear arguments against the proposed relocation of Boyle Street Community Services to a new facility at 101 Street and 107A Avenue. Janice Agrios, a lawyer representing some of the appellants, argued the new building is zoned for commercial use and not for social services the organization offers. Boyle Street Community Services executive director Jordan Reiniger said the organization's development permit application included the same uses they have in their current building. "There is a lot of fundamental misunderstandings about the work that we do," Reiniger said. A decision from the board is expected within 15 days.
• Court filings show Duncan Kinney is now facing an additional charge of mischief to religious property in connection with the vandalism of a Ukrainian World War II memorial at St. Michael's Cemetery, Postmedia reported. Kinney was already facing one charge of mischief after a controversial statue outside a Ukrainian centre was spray-painted with the words 'Actual Nazi.' Kinney, a vocal police critic and editor with The Progress Report, wrote about the vandalism in August 2021. In a statement released after the initial charge was laid, Kinney said he would mount a "vigorous defence" and called the accusations an attempt by police to "silence and discredit a critic." He is next due in court on Dec. 22.

This week, city council will meet on Monday with a continuation scheduled for Tuesday morning, and a special city council meeting scheduled for Tuesday afternoon.

Key agenda items include the following:

• Council will have its first opportunity to discuss the proposed 2023-2026 operating budget, which includes property tax increases of 3.9% each year, due in part to staff wage increases, the rising cost of debt for already-approved projects like LRT expansion, higher energy costs, and the return of the police funding formula. A number of unfunded service packages will also be considered over the next month, including the implementation of the Bike Plan, an express bus service from the airport to downtown, and Phase 1 of the Edmonton Metropolitan Transit Services Commission (EMTSC) regional service plan.
• The city's first carbon budget is intended to augment council's decisions about the capital and operating budgets, and it highlights that current investments are not enough to achieve reduction targets.
• A public hearing will be held at 1:30pm on Nov. 14 for proposed changes to the city's policies regarding debt. Administration recommends increasing total debt servicing limits from 22% of city revenues to 26% of city revenues (but borrowing above 21% would be restricted to "emergency purposes" only) and increasing the tax-supported debt servicing limit from 15% of tax-supported revenues to 18% of tax-supported expenditures.

Here are some of the other new agenda items:

• Council will consider five options for dealing with amendments to the budget. Administration recommends against the "first moved, first voted" and randomized approaches, and also recommends that some sections of the council procedures bylaw be waived to help "smooth the pace of deliberations."
• The 2021 annual report for the Edmonton Police Service will be presented at council. It was submitted to the Edmonton Police Commission in March.

Opportunities this week include a showcase for university entrepreneurs, a celebration of social tech innovation, a look at what hydrogen means for Alberta, a meet-and-greet with the Elks CEO, a set of pitches for investment, an artsy fundraiser, and a business networking event.

• Nov. 14, 10am: Pop-Up Shop: Celebrating University Entrepreneurship at Concordia University of Edmonton
• Nov. 16, 11am: Demo Day — Virtual Viewing for the TELUS Community Safety and Wellness Accelerator
• Nov. 16, 12pm: Hydrogen Economy, presented by Edmonton Chapter of CPAs
• Nov. 16, 6pm: Up Close and Personal with Victor Cui, presented by the Philippine Business Society of Alberta
• Nov. 17, 4:30pm: Startup TNT Investment Summit VI Finale
• Nov. 17, 5pm: Here's Nina 2022 at the Edmonton Expo Centre Ballroom
• Nov. 18, 9am: Coffee with the Chamber at the Jerry Forbes Centre

Find even more listings in Taproot's weekly roundups.

Photo: The vocal group 6 Minute Warning is among the acts performing at Here's Nina, the annual fundraiser and awards evening in support of the Nina Haggerty Centre for the Arts. (Facebook)