Calgary Minute: Business Uncertainty, Community Spirit, and Utility Bill Deferrals

Calgary Minute - Your weekly one-minute summary of Calgary politics

This Week In Calgary:

• There is no council meeting scheduled for this week due to a planned "Spring Break". The Council calendar does, however, include a meeting of the Council Compensation Review Committee on Thursday, though it isn't clear whether that meeting will go ahead.
  
  
• Beginning today, access to City Hall will be limited for citizens in order to "ensure a safe and secure workplace and to encourage physical distancing".
  
  
• Starting Tuesday, there will be changes to green, blue, and black cart collection schedules. Green cart collection will remain at every other week, instead of switching to weekly. Black carts will also be collected every other week and blue carts will be collected every week. Extra bags of waste and garbage will not be collected.

Last Week In Calgary:

• The City announced that Calgarians will be able to defer paying their utility bills by three months if they need to. The charges would be pro-rated over citizens' bills for the remainder of 2020. The City has no plans to defer the 8.9% tax hike though - if you haven't already, you can sign our petition calling for the tax hike to be cancelled here.
  
  
• Small businesses in Calgary are facing an immense amount of uncertainty as the city is increasingly put on lockdown to stop the spread of COVID-19. Many were already struggling immensely with high business taxes and Alberta's difficult economy, and even a temporary shutdown could threaten their survival.
  
  
• Finally, Calgarians have an amazing history of supporting our community during difficult times. A Facebook group, called YYC COVID-19 Volunteers, has attracted thousands of Calgarians who want to help out fellow community members. Check it out if you need, or can offer, help during this emergency.

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