Calgary Minute: Stephen Avenue, Transit Cuts, but no Climate Change Cuts

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

This Week In Calgary:

• Council's Summer Break continues this week, with the next full council meeting not scheduled until next month.
  
  
• There is a Calgary Planning Commission meeting happening on Thursday where councillors will discuss at least 13 different Land Use matters.
  
  
• The Commission will also receive a verbal update on the City's "Developed Areas Guidebook" which is one of a number of tools the City uses to set rules for development. The presentation will be done in secret, but the City is in the middle of a public consultation on changes to the Guidebook, so this is likely what the report will be about.

Last Week In Calgary:

• In the midst of tax revolts and cuts to essential services, the City has hired an international design firm to "reimagine" Stephen Avenue. Apparently, the City's solution to empty shops and going-out-of-business sales is to spend even more money hiring a consultant rather than listening to small business owners, cutting red tape, and lowering taxes.
  
  
• More details about the City's budget cuts revealed that Calgary Transit will be cutting 80,000 service hours, meaning C-Trains and Buses will run less frequently and some routes will shut down earlier in the evening. Given the City is still spending more money this year than last year, even after the budget cuts, where exactly has all the money gone? We have a few ideas, and we're tired of the city prioritizing vanity projects over the needs of Calgarians. 
  
  
• Speaking of which, the City's "Climate Resilience Strategy Fund" came under fire after it was revealed that the City's budget "cuts" simply meant that the department won't hire an extra eighth staff member, and will keep their existing seven staff. Whatever you think about Climate Change, this is about priorities, not the environment. Why do budget cuts lead to a reduction in transit services (something that is a key municipal responsibility) but no reduction in climate change bureaucracy (something that isn't a municipal responsibility at all)?
  

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