 | Saturday, September 04, 2021
By Scott Dippel
Reading this online? Sign up to get this delivered to your inbox every Saturday morning. | | COVID testing at city hall | | |  | A voluntary rapid testing site recently opened at city hall. Soon, rapid testing will be mandatory for some unvaccinated city employees. (Scott Dippel/CBC) | | | With the rising number of COVID-19 cases in Calgary, the city has introduced its next steps in dealing with the pandemic for city employees.
While council's emergency management committee discussed the situation Friday afternoon, city administration has now released a policy that will require employees to be vaccinated by November 1. Those who require accommodation will have to undergo mandatory rapid testing. Failure to comply with the policy could result in discipline up to and including dismissal.
For the past several weeks, some city employees have been able to access voluntary rapid testing at their workplace. Three sites are now up and running.
A testing site opened recently at city hall. Employees who are unwell are asked to stay home. The city's director of environment and safety management, Christopher Collier, said employees who want "peace of mind" or just want to check their status can stop in for a test. So far, he said 1,400 tests have been done and there have been no positive results.
The city says all employees must disclose their vaccination status by Sept. 13 and those without a valid exemption will have to have at least one dose by that time.
Read more. | | |  | This rendering shows what the proposed Midtown Station could someday look like, near the intersection of Macleod Trail and Glenmore Trail. (City of Calgary) | Midtown delay | There has been a delay in big plans for a new mixed-development project called Midtown Station here in Calgary.
Cantana Investment Ltd. has assembled land that's squeezed between Macleod Trail and the CP tracks, stretching from Glenmore Trail and 73 Avenue S.E. The company wants to turn the nearly 13-hectare site into a high density, mixed-use development, and it's willing to pay for a new infill LRT station to serve the area.
At this week's meeting of council's planning and urban development committee, the administration recommendation for this proposal was to drop plans to designate it as a strategic growth centre. The bureaucrats concluded a development of this size would hamper city efforts to revitalize downtown. That revitalization is such a priority that council recently approved putting $200 million towards various projects in the core. The approval of a project like Midtown would require millions of dollars in city money to provide extra underground utilities to service the site.
It was also pointed out by Ward 8 Coun. Evan Woolley that various other LRT stations have been zoned for such intense transit-oriented development over the years, but there's been no sign of construction.
The committee did not accept the administration recommendation to drop the plan. Instead it voted to refer the project back to city administration and wanted another report put before city council by the end of next year.
The developer, which has spent more than $1 million on preparation work for the city's processes, told the committee that it understands the concerns. However a representative said that its plans shouldn't detract from downtown revitalization efforts. It remains interested in working with the city in the decades ahead.
The chair of the committee, Ward 3 Coun. Jyoti Gondek, said committee members want city council as a whole to take a larger look at this proposal before there's a decision. She wants to hear expert advice from the city's real estate working group on the feasibility of this proposal.
"We need to make sure that we're not detracting from some investments we've already made in other places. If this is something we can do on top of the other work we have going, then we need to look at it," said Gondek.
For now, it's going to be something for the next city council to tackle | | |  | (Jeff McIntosh) | Chahal stays on the job | As the busy fall political season gets underway at city hall, Coun. George Chahal has made the decision to do double duty. He's still working as the councillor for Ward 5, even though he's running for the federal Liberals in Calgary Skyview.
There is no legal requirement for council members to resign or take a leave if they pursue another public office.
Chahal was with his city colleagues this week, taking part in local committee meetings.
"I was elected to represent my communities in Ward 5 and Ward 10 in northeast Calgary until the end of the term and I've been doing that," said Chahal.
He and Ward 9 Coun. Gian-Carlo Carra are both looking after the needs of Ward 10 residents since their former councillor resigned last October.
Chahal points to other councillors who have spent months either running for mayor, or seeking their own re-election. He says he's leaning on his staff and focusing on city matters during the day, and that federal campaigning events and doorknocking are more evening and weekend pursuits for him.
It’s like juggling two full-time jobs, but Chahal said he feels he’s doing well at both roles.
Chahal said he consulted with city council's ethics advisor to ensure he stays within city rules and the province's Municipal Government Act. Chahal also said unlike some of his colleagues who took some personal time during council's August break, he's stayed on the job. | | Truth and reconciliation | The Alberta government has taken some criticism for saying that it will not be giving its public employees the day off on September 30, for the first ever National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.
The federal government approved legislation to create the new statutory holiday. It's supposed to be an important step in the reconciliation process in recognizing the history and ongoing legacy of the residential school system.
The Alberta government will lower flags on its buildings that day and encourage reflection. But its workers won't get the day off.
The picture at Calgary city hall remains unclear.
In a statement, city administration told CBC News: "The City of Calgary is currently considering the many aspects of this legislation regarding this very important day."
Mayor Naheed Nenshi explained: "As an employer, we do have a number of collective agreements to deal with, so we have not yet figured out what that's going to look like."
He also suggested that some sort of public event will be organized by the city for that day. | | | 6 more municipal stories you shouldn't miss | | | | | Share this newsletter | | or subscribe if this was
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