St. Albert Minute: School Site, Armoured Cables, and a Name Removal Request

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

This Week In St. Albert:

• On Tuesday, at 1:00 pm, there will be a meeting of City Council. Council will discuss property tax relief requests, and the Q3 Corporate Quarterly Report. There will also be a delegation from the St. Albert Public School Board regarding the northeast St. Albert School Site Servicing Plan, after which Councillor Hughes will bring forward a Notice of Motion to get the site shovel-ready. (More on that below!).
  
  
• Councillor Sheena Hughes is pushing for the Erin Ridge North site in St. Albert to be prepared for a future high school, aiming for water and sewer services to be in place by the second quarter of 2025. She is requesting a costed plan to make the site shovel-ready. Hughes is hoping to meet the province's School Construction Accelerator Program deadline, which requires sites to be shovel-ready for consideration. With school enrollment growing rapidly in the city, Hughes believes this plan will increase St. Albert's chances of securing funding for the new school. First though, fellow Councillors will have to agree to waive the mandated 20-day waiting period between the introduction of a Notice of Motion and its appearance on a Council agenda.
  
  
• The Seniors’ Advisory Committee will meet on Wednesday at 6:30 pm. The agenda includes the Seniors/Elders Service Award, a City Council Recognition Event, and a Staff Liaison update.

Last Week In St. Albert:

• In response to recent thefts, the City said it will add steel-lined sleeves to its EV charging cables as part of a $2,400 pilot project. The thefts, which occurred in summer 2024, led to the replacement of 12 stolen cables across several popular charging stations. The armoured sleeves, expected to be in place by January, are designed to make the cables more difficult to steal. St. Albert is collaborating with the City of Leduc in being the first Canadian communities to trial this solution. If successful, the City plans to expand the armoured covers to other stations.
  
  
• The City has confirmed that a request to remove Bishop Vital Grandin's name from a City neighbourhood can move forward, as it meets the criteria outlined in the City's Naming Policy, having gathered over 50 supporters. The Naming Committee will now review the request and present a recommendation to Council in early 2025. The call for renaming follows public outcry linked to Grandin's role in establishing Canada's residential school system. The City also clarified that no other renaming applications have been received.
  
  
• The 15th annual Toys for Tickets campaign has begun. Running until November 30th, the campaign allows motorists to pay for eligible parking tickets with a new, unwrapped toy valued at $25 or more. The toys, which can be for children up to 16 years old, will be donated to the Fill-A-Bus campaign as part of the Kinette Club’s Christmas Hamper Campaign. The campaign saw a significant increase in donations between 2022 and 2023, with 97 toys worth approximately $2,300 collected in 2023, up from 61 toys valued at $1,340 in 2022. Donations can be made at the Maloney Place RCMP detachment by December 7th. Additionally, some residents have contributed toys without a ticket, and you can do that too!

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