June 8th E-News
June is Bike Month! Let's get out and ride and explore our community, make new friends, and enjoy our summer. From mural tours to playground tours to bakeries to breweries -- we got you covered! This is a rolling list of events and if you are aware of another one, please let me know!
TAKE ACTION: If you haven't sent a letter already, we have $400M on the table from the Federal government. Use this tool to send a letter and help ensure that Edmonton gets our fair share!
JUNE 18TH BIKE EVENT POSTPONED DUE TO RAIN
June is Bike Month! Let's get out and ride and explore our community, make new friends, and enjoy our summer. From mural tours to playground tours to bakeries to breweries -- we got you covered! This is a rolling list of events and if you are aware of another one, please let me know!
We also want you to help us find the next bike mayor of your neighbourhood!
TAKE ACTION: If you haven't sent a letter already, we have $400M on the table from the Federal government. Use this tool to send a letter and help ensure that Edmonton gets our fair share!
And if you haven't already: make sure your bike, chariot, strollers -- register them all on Bike Index!
Edmonton City Council Update:
- Events: Bikes & Bakeries & Breweries
- Chinatown & Downtown
- Police Funding: Laying out the facts...
- Dog Parks (August 22nd)
- Renters Rights
- Noisy Vehicles (June 27th)
- Surplus School Sites
- Chamber of Commerce doesn't pay property taxes - huh?
- Remembering George Floyd
- Around the World - Oslo, and Push the Needle
Dear Readers, I'm breaking these newsletters into two sections. The first is City Updates, the second portion will be an Environment Scan of issues arising in other cities in Canada to inform, delight, or provoke your imagination.
Edmonton City Council Update:
As the winter weather warms, new challenges migrate and surface. Homelessness has almost doubled during the pandemic, but funding from the UCP and Premier Kenney has not.
In no particular order:
Who does the silence serve? Why don't we know their names?
There has been an increasing amount of work on the topic of Police forces releasing names of victims of homicide in recent years, as there has been a marked shift in the way the police are reporting this information.
On February 24th, Edmonton Police killed two people. One, a suspect in a liquor store robbery, and two, an unrelated person in their apartment. Two months and two days later, we still do not know the name of the innocent person killed.
I was quite interested to read about Calgary Property Tax Data and foreign home ownership. With the housing market across Canada going wild, the Federal Government has recently announced a ban on foreign homebuyers. I asked Edmonton Administration to pull a city inquiry similar to Calgary as to where property tax assessments are being mailed.
I remain deeply concerned about equity and affordable housing and support new measures to help provide stability and a home for all of us. I'm working with other council colleagues to explore other taxation and assessment tools to provide equity, resiliency, and stability in our climate emergency.
I’m inspired by what Mayor Stewart has accomplished in Vancouver in terms of an empty homes tax, and see that he recently proposed increasing the tax to five percent and improving compliance. (https://council.vancouver.ca/20220426/documents/b3.pdf?mc_cid=ac23ded342&mc_eid=12d1178433)
Once again, another diverse menu of options for you to indulge your interests!
