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- There are no meetings at City Hall today, as it is Remembrance Day. Several Remembrance Day events will take place in and around Edmonton to honour fallen armed forces members. Those attending the ceremony at Edmonton City Hall are being asked to be inside no later than 9:50 am. The Alberta Aviation Museum will hold its event at 10:30 am, while the Beverly Cenotaph ceremony begins with a church service at 9:30 am, followed by a memorial at 10:50 am. Other events include ceremonies at Kingsway Legion, the Jewish Federation of Edmonton, Norwood Legion, and Patricia Park Memorial, all starting around 10:30 am. Additionally, West Edmonton Mall will host a ceremony at the Ice Palace at 10:00 am.
- On Tuesday, at 8:30 am, there will be a meeting of the Agenda Review Committee, followed by a Public Hearing at 9:30 am to address several land use amendments. On Wednesday, at 9:30 am, there will be a meeting of City Council. At this meeting, Administration will present its fall budget adjustment reports to Council. The meeting will continue on Thursday at 9:30 am.
- Edmonton police are investigating a series of suspicious fires in south Edmonton, including a recent arson in the King Edward Park neighbourhood. The fire, reported Thursday night, started in a dumpster and spread to a detached garage, causing $50,000 in damages but no injuries. Since May, seven such incidents have been reported in the Strathearn, Cloverdale, King Edward Park, and Holyrood areas. Although there is no connection to Project Gaslight at this time, which involves extortions targeting the South Asian community, police are actively patrolling and investigating the fires. Local residents are concerned over the increasing number of incidents, fearing for their safety.
- This morning, at 9:30 am, there will be a City Council Public Hearing. There are several land use amendments on the agenda, including a proposal to zone for a pair of high rise residential towers. (More on that below!). If the hearing does not conclude on time, it will continue on November 4th at 6:00 pm.
- The Agenda Review Committee will meet on Tuesday at 8:30 am, as will City Council, at 9:30 am. Council’s agenda includes a monthly update on Dutch Elm Disease, the 2023 Annual Report from the Office of the Integrity Commissioner, and the Executive Committee’s report on the Chinatown Strategy, along with several other items. Should the meeting not conclude on time, it will continue on Wednesday at 9:30 am. Also on Tuesday, at 4:30 pm, there will be a Special City Council Meeting to discuss a City Manager recruitment update.
- Edmonton is facing a shortage of ice time for sports like hockey, figure skating, and ringette, despite having 21 city-operated arenas and 31 rinks. Hockey Edmonton, which has over 8,000 participants, is competing with other sports for limited ice availability. Privately-run arenas, such as Silent Ice Centre, help alleviate the pressure but come with higher costs, creating financial barriers for participants. Some groups are being forced to travel to rural arenas, increasing costs further.
- There will be a meeting of the Community and Public Services Committee at 9:30 am this morning. The Committee will discuss a private report pertaining to “Event Sponsorships”. On Tuesday, at 8:30 am, there will be an Agenda Review Committee meeting, and at 9:30 am there will be an Urban Planning Committee meeting. At the latter meeting, the Old Strathcona Public Realm Strategy will be discussed, with an eye on making the area more pedestrian friendly.
- On Wednesday, at 9:30 am, there will be a meeting of the Executive Committee. On the agenda is a discussion about designating the Crawford Residence as a Municipal Historic Resource, and a plan to address transit service needs for the city’s growing population including fleet renewal, fleet growth, and facility plans. The Committee will also discuss a Capital and Operating Funding Shortfall Analysis - the document shows that only 57.5% of the City’s ideal renewal needs are funded in the 2023 to 2026 budget cycle. Finally, on Friday, there will be a meeting of the Utility Committee at 9:30 am. The Committee will discuss and potentially approve EPCOR Water Services Inc.'s Performance Based Regulation rate application for Wastewater Services for the 2025-2027 period. This rate application, if approved, will set wastewater utility rates for customers from April 1st, 2025 to December 31st, 2027.
- PACE (the Principled Accountable Coalition for Edmonton), a new municipal political party launched in response to the Province's passing of Bill 20, is hosting a series of information sessions. The events take place at various locations around the city throughout October and November, and at them, PACE will share how they plan to build a team, seek common sense candidates, and prepare for the next municipal election. Their next upcoming info session takes place tomorrow, at 7:30pm, at the SE Edmonton Seniors Center. A full list of events is available online.
- On Tuesday, there will be a City Council Public Hearing at 9:30 am to address several zoning amendments, including one in Westmount that seeks to rezone a large area at 105 Avenue and 124 Street. There are plans to construct a large-scale apartment building reaching up to 85 meters tall, covering a footprint of 850 square meters.
- There will be a meeting of City Council on Wednesday at 9:30 am. Council will review and make decisions on previously discussed items, including knife sales, potential fare gates at certain LRT stations, tax options for remediated derelict properties, and the 2024 Affordable Housing Grant Awards, along with amendments to various community plans. Should the meeting not conclude on time, it will continue on Thursday at 9:30 am.
- At 12:00 pm on Thursday, there will be a Special Audit Committee meeting to discuss a private item labelled “External Auditor - Non-Audit Service Request”. On Friday, there will be a meeting of the Special City Manager and City Auditor Performance Evaluation Committee at 9:30 am to discuss a consultant update, followed by a Non-Regular Meeting of City Council at 1:30 pm. During the latter meeting, a private Intergovernmental Update will be discussed.