The Pulse: March 5, 2025

A former fire chief and city manager is joining Edmonton's Darkhorse Emergency to serve as the "translator" between the data-to-action company and its clients, which include fire chiefs and municipalities.

"I wasn't brought into the team just to grow, grow, grow," Darrell Reid, who formerly headed Strathcona County, told Taproot about his new role. "We're growing (already), and I suppose I'm here to help Darkhorse understand the (municipal fire) industry — and help the industry understand Darkhorse."

Darkhorse Emergency helps fire departments optimize their services by mapping the areas they need to serve and identifying where best to locate infrastructure like fire halls. The company was spun out of its parent, Darkhorse Analytics, in 2023. Darkhorse was itself spun out of a research lab at the University of Alberta in 2008. Darkhorse Analytics has created data visualization tools on climate vulnerability and public health outcomes. All told, there are 45 "Darkhorsian" employees, Reid said.

Darkhorse Emergency now has 41 clients, 40% of which are American and 60% of which are Canadian. The Canadian clients, including emergency departments, serve nearly 14 million people. By the end of 2025, Reid said, the company expects to grow to support organizations that in turn support 50% of Canada's population.

Reid, who wrapped work with Strathcona County at the end of January, worked with Darkhorse when he served as fire chief from 2008 to 2013, and again when he returned to be chief commissioner (or city manager) from 2020 to 2025. In the former role, he worked with Darkhorse Emergency to make the case to municipal administration and council that the county needed a new fire station. That resulted in the opening of Fire Station #6 in Sherwood Park in 2011. Darkhorse Emergency also helped plan the opening of Fire Station #7 last year, when Reid was chief commissioner for the county.

"There we were, in a situation with rapid growth in the community, and some resource deficits in terms of being able to respond to the risk created with that growth," Reid said of the experience of the sixth staton. "It was a very successful exercise and a good example of Darkhorse having expertise and resources that a mid-size municipality, and a mid-size municipality fire department, did not have."

Beyond Strathcona County, the company has worked for fire departments in the Edmonton region including St. Albert, the City of Leduc, and Leduc County.

Between his jobs in Strathcona County, Reid served as fire chief in Vancouver and as deputy fire chief in Toronto. The latter city's fire department served three million residents in comparison to Strathcona County's 200,000, Reid said. Darkhorse Emergency helped Reid and his department navigate a "significant and unexpected" budget cut in 2014, when then-Mayor Rob Ford ordered a fire station to close, "despite the fact that calls for service were growing rapidly."

"Darkhorse provided a lens and an approach to analytics that was fresh and different, and as a result, allowed us to message things in ways people hadn't necessarily heard them before — to tell some truths in ways that people can understand those truths," Reid said. "(The company enabled us) to make some decisions that helped that department redesign itself and re-resource itself to deal with increasing risk and calls to service."

Reid said his new role with Darkhorse Emergency is to act as a "translator" between Darkhorse's tech and its work with those in the public service. Since joining Darkhorse Emergency, Reid has been a face for the company at the Western Fire Chiefs Association's IGNITE Symposium in Las Vegas in early February. "It struck me right away how trusted and appreciated Darkhorse is by that group of progressive (fire) chiefs," Reid said. "A lot of Darkhorse clients were there, and it's a good thing when a client brings a bunch of non-clients to the booth."

• The City of Edmonton released a new Blueprint for Violence Prevention to reduce violence by addressing systemic issues and connecting different levels of government. The report, presented to the community and public services committee on March 3, also focuses on keeping youth and various communities safe.
• Premier Danielle Smith said in a statement that Alberta "fully supports" the federal government's response to tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump, and that she will announce Alberta's response on March 5. Smith said Alberta won't use energy as a retaliatory measure, despite Prime Minister Justin Trudeau imposing retaliatory tariffs of 25% on $30 billion worth of U.S. products. NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi criticized Smith, saying she has consistently chosen the wrong approach to U.S. tariffs.
• Edmonton leaders are responding to U.S.-imposed tariffs on Canadian goods. Edmonton Mayor Amarjeet Sohi called the tariffs "an attack on Canadian workers" that will negatively impact affordability in Edmonton and across Canada by driving up costs in various sectors, including housing. Sohi said the City of Edmonton is working with Edmonton Global and the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce to understand the full effect of the tariffs and coordinate a response. Chamber president and CEO Doug Griffiths said the tariffs will add to the burden of inflation, labour shortages and supply chain disruptions that Canadian companies are already facing, and will also negatively impact American businesses and consumers.
• In an op-ed published in Postmedia, Katrina Rowe, board chair for BILD Edmonton Metro, and Kim Petrin, the City of Edmonton's deputy city manager of urban planning and economy, argue that Edmonton's housing approach is a national success. They highlighted the city's top ranking in the 2024 Canadian Home Builders Association National Municipal Benchmarking Study, and noted that Edmonton's population growth has driven the need for faster housing development. The writers attributed the success to long-term planning, progressive policies and collaboration between government, developers and the community.
• Alberta is entering the 2025 wildfire season with a "historic" $160 million investment in base funding for preparedness, Forestry Minister Todd Loewen said. If Budget 2025 is passed, the funding will support wildfire personnel, equipment, training, and aircraft contracts. This season will also see a pilot project using hoist-equipped helicopters for rapid deployment of crews. Loewen says the province is in "substantially better shape" regarding wildfires compared to 2024, when the wildfire season began early. As of March 4, Alberta has seven active wildfires, all of which are contained. While the province projects a $5.2-billion deficit, it will increase its contingency fund to $4 billion to address unanticipated spending, including wildfires, and allocate $15 million over three years to the Forest Improvement Association of Alberta.
• The "Alberta is Calling" campaign, launched in 2022, successfully attracted skilled workers from other provinces, particularly from Vancouver, leading to increased economic competition between Alberta and B.C. Vancouver, once the dominant tech hub of Western Canada, faces challenges such as high taxes, expensive real estate, and declining business investment, prompting a counter-campaign called "Stay with B.C."
• The Canadian government is investing more than $46 million in Edmonton to build and renew 1,431 homes across 21 housing projects. Edmonton Centre MP Randy Boissonnault announced the funding at Central Village, an apartment building operated by Civida. Funding includes $37.2 million through the Affordable Housing Fund for 124 units and $8.8 million through the Canada Greener Affordable Housing program to renew 1,307 units. The projects aim to address the needs of vulnerable populations in Edmonton.
• Edmonton International Airport is seeking public support for an airline to introduce a non-stop flight to London. Community members are encouraged to visit YEGwantsLondon to add their name and show demand for the route.
• Joan Hertz will become the new board chair for Amii, effective March 27, succeeding Bruce Johnson, who the organization said has played a pivotal role in its growth. Johnson's tenure saw Amii expand industry partnerships, increase research capacity and enhance AI education efforts.
• A semi-truck carrying logging equipment struck the overpass on 34 Street on the Sherwood Park Freeway just after midnight on March 4, resulting in extensive damage and road closures. RCMP reported no injuries. North and southbound lanes of 34 Street and westbound lanes of the Sherwood Park Freeway were affected. RCMP said the overpass will be closed indefinitely.
• The Edmonton Police Service will not lay charges in the Feb. 5 death of 13-year-old Eric Omeasoo at the MacEwan LRT station. Police said the investigation showed evidence the boy's stabbing death was an act of self-defence. Omeasoo was part of a group of four youths and one 18-year-old who police say assaulted a 34-year-old man and a 32-year-old woman, who had been taking shelter at the station. The other four suspects were charged with aggravated assault, assault with a weapon, and possessing an offensive weapon.
• Evolution Wonderlounge, an Edmonton gay bar, will relocate to Jasper Avenue and 115 Street and rebrand as Evo in early April, co-owner Rob Browatzke said. The new location will offer daily programming, happy hour, a kitchen and a dance floor. The space will be more accessible and may include sidewalk and rooftop patios. Evolution Wonderlounge will also remain open in its current location until its lease expires near the end of 2025.
• The Edmonton Police Service is raising awareness about scams as Fraud Prevention Month begins. In 2024, Edmontonians lost more than $48 million to scams, with investment scams topping the list at $14.1 million, followed by romance scams at $1.7 million and employment fraud at $1.3 million. Det. Scott Abbott noted that seniors are often targeted by romance or grandparent scams, while younger people are more susceptible to investment scams.
• PrairiesCan is investing more than $1.8 million in four Alberta organizations to bolster the province's value-added agriculture industry. Edmonton-based New Harvest will receive $1 million to advance cellular agriculture practices. Other organizations receiving funding are the Mackenzie Applied Research Association in Fort Vermilion, Alberta Sugar Beet Growers in Taber and Economic Development Lethbridge.
• The Edmonton Oilers have acquired Trent Frederic, Max Jones, and Petr Hauser. Frederic, a 27-year-old left-shot forward from the Boston Bruins, has 15 goals and 14 assists this season, and previously led the Bruins in hits during the 2023-24 season. Jones, also a 27-year-old left-shot forward, has played for both Boston and the AHL's Providence Bruins this season. Hauser, a 21-year-old player from Czechia, has played in the top Czech league and represented his country in the World Junior Championships.

Here are some events happening today in the Edmonton area.

• Community Coffee Takeover - Vesti Community Mixer starting at 8am at Edmonton Unlimited
• Industry Insights: Community Networking Event starting at 11:30am at Allard Hall
• Growing Knowledge & Adaptation Supports starting at 1pm online
• Q & A with Hubert & Josh Lau - Alberta Food Security Inc. starting at 4:30pm at Brighton Block
• Gifts of Hope 2025: The Art of Advocacy starting at 5pm at Art Gallery of Alberta
• Late Hours: Western Canada Tour 2025 starting at 7pm at Metro Cinema

And here are some upcoming events to keep in mind:

• March 13: Women United Signature Event: Compassion in Command at NAIT Productivity and Innovation Centre
• March 15: The Household Doctor Lecture with Michael Mucz at Alberta Council for the Ukrainian Arts
• March 18: A Prescription for Change: Celebrating Social Prescribing Day in Alberta online

Visit the beta version of the Taproot Edmonton Calendar for many more events in the Edmonton region.