The Pulse: Feb. 13, 2023

This week, audit committee will meet on Feb. 13 and executive committee will meet on Feb. 15. Here are some of the key items on the agenda:

• Administration asserts there are "limited tools available" to make the property tax system more progressive, and says most approaches "are inadvisable given legislative limitations." As of 2022, there were about 4,800 residential properties valued at $1 million or more, which, if taxed at a 10% higher rate, would reduce taxes for properties below the threshold by 0.3%. A separate report on residential tax subclasses suggests phasing out the "Other Residential" subclass — which consists mainly of multi-unit rental properties — would reduce taxes for those properties by 11.7% and increase taxes for other residential properties by 1.6%. Such a change would support the City Plan's focus on higher density, administration said.
• The Edmonton Screen Industries Office is seeking permission to use a $4-million fund to build capacity in the creative industries rather than investing in productions with the expectation of financial returns. The goal is to "make an industry that then makes money," Tom Viinikka, CEO of the ESIO, told Taproot.
• Administration has provided a breakdown of spending by department, along with population growth and inflation, for the period of 2012 to 2022. The report indicates that "generally civic department expenditure budgets have grown on pace with population and inflation" with the largest increases resulting from expenses related to expanded capital spending such as debt servicing and dedicated levies for neighbourhood renewal and LRT expansion.

• Edmonton Transit Service said its bus ridership levels have returned to 100% of its pre-pandemic levels, becoming one of the first large transit systems to reach the milestone. During January 2023, there was an average of 1.2 million rides per week, compared with just 350,000 rides per week during the height of the pandemic in 2020. ETS attributed the increase in ridership to a variety of factors, including the Bus Network Redesign, which added On Demand Transit service, and the recent introduction of the Arc electronic payment system.
• New Edmonton Police Service (EPS) recruits from diverse backgrounds accounted for at least 60% of new hires between 2020-22. A total of 159 new hires over the past three years identified as Indigenous, people of colour or gender or sexually diverse. A ceremony for graduating recruits at City Hall on Feb. 10 included constables from nine countries who speak 14 languages among them. The police service has outlined its efforts to hire more diverse people in its Commitment to Action plan and its 2023-26 Strategic Plan. According to data collected in its 2021 Annual Report, 20% of EPS senior ranks are women, 12% are Indigenous and 8% are racialized.
• An Edmonton Police Service (EPS) officer who missed a body while searching a homicide scene has been demoted from detective to constable following a disciplinary hearing. Paul Kelly, who was a detective with the crime scene investigation unit, failed to locate the body of 25-year-old victim Blayne Burnstick while investigating the scene at a rooming house on Sept. 13, 2017. The body was ultimately discovered five days later, leading Chief Dale McFee to charge Kelly with 14 counts under the Police Act. Kelly was convicted of 10 counts last November and has been suspended without pay since.
• Rob McLeod, otherwise known as Frisbee Rob, attempted to break his own record for the longest self-caught Frisbee toss on skates Feb. 11 during the Silver Skate Festival at Hawrelak Park. McLeod had been aiming for 100 metres, but only managed to throw the Frisbee 79 metres, falling short of his record of 93 set in 2018.
• Stable interest rates could encourage potential homebuyers seeking mortgages to take the plunge this year, according to Marc Crossman, managing partner with Alberta Mortgage Professionals. On Jan. 25, the Bank of Canada increased the overnight interest rate by 25 basis points to 4.5%, but said it expects to hold the rate steady while it assesses the impact of recent increases.
• The Alberta government appointed five new judges to serve on the provincial court beginning in March, including four in the Edmonton division. The government also appointed four new justices of the peace, two of whom will serve in Edmonton.
• Premier Danielle Smith drew widespread criticism after she tweeted a video in which she said Indigenous people and settlers "united to tame an unforgiving frontier" for the "prosperity of countless future generations." The Confederacy of Treaty Six First Nations said in a statement that it was disappointed by the "simplistic views on the colonization of Canada's First Nations peoples and their territorial lands, and the lasting impacts colonization continues to have on our people." Smith expanded on her comments during her Your Province, Your Premier radio show on Feb. 11, after a caller asked her to apologize. She said Alberta has "been a pioneer in our relationship with First Nations" and while governments have not always lived up to Treaty agreements, her government is making "historical reparations for the errors that we made."
• Premier Danielle Smith called for a new Calgary arena deal, cautioning the experience of other cities that lost their NHL teams after failing to secure agreements. Smith made the comments Feb. 11 on her radio show in response to a caller who asked why she is pushing for a new arena rather than opening a new hospital. "I do not want to see the Quebec Flames ... so we've got to make sure that we do what we can to keep that team here," she said. The city of Calgary is currently negotiating a new events centre with the Calgary Sports and Entertainment Corp. Smith said the province has not received any funding requests for the project but is staying up to date on discussions.

This week offers sessions on board governance, regional tourism, and energy diversification, as well as a storytelling competition, a film about harm reduction, and a look at what it means to leave a legacy in Edmonton.

• Feb. 13, 4:30pm: Effective Year-End Governance for Boards and Executives by Board Ready Women
• Feb. 14, 1pm: Tourism Roundtable, presented by the St. Albert and District Chamber of Commerce
• Feb. 15, 11:30am: Capturing Investment & Maximizing Competitiveness in Energy Diversification from the Construction Owners Association of Alberta
• Feb. 15, 7pm: Edmonton Story Slam at 9910
• Feb. 16, 5pm: Love in the Time of Fentanyl at Metro Cinema
• Feb. 16, 6:30pm: Elevate: Legacy, featuring Keren Tang, London Blackwood, and Shane Breau

Find even more things to do in Taproot's weekly roundups.

Taproot is seeking input on whether to build an event calendar. Tell us what you think.

Photo: A documentary on the drug poisoning crisis on Feb. 16 will be preceded by naloxone training and followed by a panel discussion. Proceeds will go to the 4B Harm Reduction Society. (Love in the Time of Fentanyl)