Calgary Minute: Electric Buses, Deteriorating Buildings, and Arena Talks Restarted

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

This Week In Calgary:

• There will be an Organizational Meeting of Council on Tuesday at 9:30 am. Council will receive a number of confidential reports, including one regarding the 2023 appointment of a general chair for the Calgary Assessment Review Board and another regarding the 2023 appointment of a chair for the Calgary Subdivision and Development Appeal Board. Also on the agenda are the 2022-2023 Council Chamber Seating Plan and the 2023 Deputy Mayor Roster and Related Duties.
  
  
• Following the Council meeting, there will be a Community Development Committee meeting. Timing depends on the adjournment of the previous meeting. There is nothing on the agenda yet.
  
  
• The Infrastructure and Planning Committee will meet on Tuesday following adjournment of the Community Development Committee meeting. There is nothing on the agenda for this meeting yet either.

Last Week In Calgary:

• The City of Calgary and the Calgary Sports and Entertainment Corporation have restarted formal Event Centre discussions. This time, the City has engaged a third party negotiator. CAA ICON, a management consulting firm, will represent the City. The firm specializes in sports venues and worked on the Rogers Place deal in Edmonton and the Calgary Convention Centre. No timeline is available for when this project might come to fruition. Here we go again…
  
  
• A report from the City’s auditor found that City-owned buildings have fallen into disrepair. According to the report, 15% of the City’s 501-building portfolio are in poor or critical condition. The cost to rehabilitate the buildings is estimated to be $100 million annually over three years. The City budget will be released on November 8th - it remains to be seen which buildings will be earmarked for repair.
  
  
• The Executive Committee heard a presentation from administration regarding a large purchase of up to 259 zero-emission electric buses. The presentation included information about a potential $168-million loan from the Canada Infrastructure Bank. It was recommended that the City sign agreements sooner, rather than later, in order to lock in interest rates before they rise. The City believes that $223 million in grants can be found from other levels of government. The City also argued that the cost of the loan would be paid for by the savings from transitioning away from diesel - we'll see!

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