St. Albert Minute: Issue 79

St. Albert Minute - Your weekly one-minute summary of St. Albert politics

📅 This Week In St. Albert: 📅

• St. Albert’s 2025 municipal election is officially underway, with the candidate list now finalized. A total of 24 names appear on the ballot, though only 23 are actively running. Incumbent Mayor Cathy Heron and two Councillors, Mike Killick and Natalie Joly, are stepping down, leaving room for newcomers. Mayoral candidates include Wes Brodhead, Scott Olivieri, Rick Dory, and Jared Eglinski. Returning and new candidates are competing for Councillor positions, including incumbents Ken MacKay, Sheena Hughes, Shelley Biermanski, and former Councillor Neil Korotash. Advance voting runs from October 14th - 18th at multiple locations, with election day on October 20th. Results may take longer than usual to be announced due to a provincial requirement for manual ballot counting.
  
  
• Council approved the redistricting of a 6.557-hectare parcel in the northeast for a new school site after a two-day public hearing. The smaller site, reduced from an original 8.5 hectares, was proposed to allow flexibility, with developer Landrex offering to donate the remaining land if used for a high school. The final vote was close at 4-3, with opposition from Councillor Mike Killick, Mayor Cathy Heron, and Councillor Natalie Joly, who cited concerns over servicing costs, safety, and infrastructure. Additional issues discussed included a nearby sour gas well and the absence of a complete neighbourhood plan, which the applicant plans to submit. Supporters emphasized the pressing need for a high school in the northeast and the ability to manage potential impacts with proper mitigation. School Board officials expressed gratitude for Council’s decision and interest in working with developers to deliver the project. The decision leaves all municipal reserve land in the area dedicated to the school, with no space remaining for other parks or trails.
  
  
• St. Albert will launch a two-year pilot program on January 1st, 2026 to expand mobility services for residents who cannot be served by the current handibus system due to access limitations. The existing service, which supports over 600 people, struggles to reach properties with tight parking lots or difficult turning areas. The pilot will use smaller, wheelchair-accessible vehicles, likely sourced from a third-party vendor, at an estimated cost of $150,000 over two years. Councillors highlighted that the program addresses an important community need, easing burdens on caregivers and reducing isolation for those without transit access. The pilot was approved unanimously, and City staff plan to contact residents previously unable to use the handibus service. Increased demand is anticipated once the program is promoted.
  
  
• The St. Albert Public Library is now offering four Bird Watching Kits for patrons to borrow, just in time for the fall migration season. Donated by the Big Lake Environment Support Society (BLESS), each kit includes binoculars, a notebook, and the 2025 BLESS bird and plant guides. The kits build on a previous library program from 2018, adding binoculars to help patrons better observe local wildlife. Library staff say the kits encourage connections between the collection and the community, complementing the library’s bird-related resources. Each kit comes in a carrying case featuring a duck, goose, hawk, or magpie silhouette, and BLESS will cover any repair or replacement costs. The kits are available at the downtown library’s member services desk.
  
  
• Postal service in St. Albert has come to a halt as Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) members launched a nationwide strike. The strike follows federal plans to address Canada Post’s financial losses, including ending door-to-door delivery, shifting non-urgent mail to ground transport, lifting the moratorium on rural post office closures, and allowing more frequent stamp price increases. CUPW criticized the proposals as prioritizing cuts over service expansion or revenue diversification, and said the changes threaten jobs. Local businesses, including bookstores and publishers, are facing disruptions, with some forced to use private couriers or suspend online operations. The strike also impacts the delivery of mail-in ballots for the upcoming municipal election, prompting voters to pick up packages directly from election offices. Canada Post has noted that socio-economic cheques and live animals in transit will still be delivered. 

🚨 This Week’s Action Item: 🚨

The municipal election is now underway.

Nomination day has passed, and the list of candidates is now final.

You can view the complete list of candidates on the City’s official election website:

🪙 This Week’s Sponsor: 🪙

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