Red Deer Minute: Cabinet Appointment, Financial Report, and Intermunicipal Development Plan

Red Deer Minute - Your weekly one-minute summary of Red Deer politics

This Week In Red Deer:

• There will be a Regular Meeting of City Council today at 10:30 am. The meeting will begin, as usual, with an in-camera (secret) portion, where Council will receive “advice from officials.” When the meeting opens up to the public, Council will receive the Quarterly Community Policing Report as well as a Stormwater Utility Update. Council will also consider a proposal to rezone the large vacant lot at the corner of 50 Street and 40 Avenue from Residential to Mixed Use Commercial. Finally, there will be a public hearing around the rezoning of the Kingsgate Area Structure Plan, which proposes removing land designated for parks and adding more multifamily housing and commercial space.
  
  
• On Tuesday, the Red Deer Construction Association will be hosting a demonstration of the City’s new online permitting system for its members. Streamlined and online permitting is something that Common Sense Red Deer has specifically called for so it's encouraging to see the City actually moving on this file!
  
  
• On Wednesday and Thursday, the Alberta Pork Congress will be having a trade show for those in the industry at Westerner Park. In keeping with the same tasty theme, Red Deer RibFest will be happening at Rotary Park on Friday.

Last Week In Red Deer:

• The City of Red Deer released its annual financial report, which showed a significantly more difficult financial position than anticipated. The City ran an operating deficit of $43.5 million - $11.2 million more than predicted. This deficit will be covered by dipping into financial reserves. We’ll be keeping a close eye on this.
  
  
• The City and the County reviewed and discussed their Intermunicipal Development Plan, and both Councils said they are excited for their new shared vision for growth in the region. The Regional Collaboration Committee will be continuing their work as the municipalities move towards a new Intermunicipal Development Plan - the current plan was written in 2007 and is in need of some updates. Both Mayors will be travelling to Paris, France, later this summer for a joint economic development opportunity.
  
  
• Premier Danielle Smith announced her new Cabinet. Locally, Red Deer-North MLA and former Minister of Education Adriana LaGrange was appointed Minister of Health. As the Red Deer Hospital remains the biggest provincial issue in Red Deer, this could be a positive development.

-----

Donate:

Common Sense Red Deer doesn't accept any government funding and never will. We think you should be free to choose, for yourself, which organizations to support. If you're in a position to contribute financially, you can make a donation here.

-----

Share:

If you're not in a position to donate, we understand, but if you appreciate our work, you can help by spreading our message. Please email this post to your friends, share it on Facebook or Twitter, and help make sure every Red Deerian knows what's really going on at City Hall.