Councillors say they are looking to gather more information surrounding a bylaw that, if passed, will enable the city to select the method it uses to advertise to the public.
Currently, the city must advertise council meeting, bylaws, resolutions, and public hearings in at least one local newspaper, as per the Municipal Government Act (MGA). In St. Albert’s case, this is The Gazette.
Beginning in 2017, the MGA allows councils to create their own ad bylaw to outline their own rules for notifying the public through advertisements. St. Albert’s new bylaw passed its first reading April 19.
The new bylaw — set to come before council Aug. 15 — would allow the city to choose between one or more of the following options for publishing legal advertisements: on the City of St. Albert’s website, on the City of St. Albert’s official social media sites, and on local media outlets’ official websites or social media sites.
According to the city’s 2021 community satisfaction survey, St. Albert residents find information about the city less frequently on the city’s website and official social media than in The Gazette (68 per cent of respondents use The Gazette for city information, while 44 per cent use the website and 39 per cent use social media).
Before passing an ad bylaw, the MGA requires council to “be satisfied that the method the bylaw would provide for is likely to bring … things advertised by that method to the attention of substantially all residents in the area.”
The Gazette asked council members whether the current bylaw would satisfy this requirement.
Coun. Wes Brodhead said that in his eyes the intent of the bylaw is to “make sure that the people in our community are fully aware of what’s going on.”
“People [receive information] online more and more,” Brodhead said. “That doesn’t mean that the newspaper is not required anymore. In my opinion, it certainly is.”
He added that he will have questions for administration when the bylaw comes before council.
“I just want to make sure, as we go forward as a council, that we’re clear in what we’re actually asking,” Brodhead said of the effect of the bylaw.
Brodhead said he looks forward to hearing from his colleagues during debate at council.
Mayor Cathy Heron was unavailable for an interview due to being on holiday. In an email, Heron relayed that she has no new information to add beyond statements she made in a previous April interview where she spoke about the bylaw with The Gazette.
Coun. Shelley Biermanski said she feels it’s premature to comment on the bylaw.
She added she has questions she would like to ask of administration regarding the bylaw, but would like to voice them during the council meeting.
Similar to Brodhead, Coun. Ken MacKay said he doesn’t read the intent of the bylaw as departing from the city’s current communications plans, which utilize The Gazette.
“I’ve never seen it as an either or,” MacKay said.
Instead, MacKay said the bylaw will give the city the opportunity to publish notices more rapidly in “rare circumstances” where this may be needed. Otherwise, he said he sees the city continuing to advertise utilizing multiple avenues.
“I’m not seeing it that way. I don’t see it as a weapon,” MacKay said. “I think it’s just something that allows us to expand everybody’s access.”
In an April interview, Coun. Sheena Hughes expressed concerns about the timing of the ad bylaw coming before council in August, when residents are historically less engaged.
“People are on vacation … and then we schedule a public hearing about how we communicate with the public,” Hughes told The Gazette.
MacKay said he doesn’t agree, noting that the hearing date was set according to procedure.
He noted that the city is required to notify residents about the public hearing for the bylaw as part of the MGA.
“If people are engaged … they will get involved and if it’s a concern to them, they will raise it,” MacKay said.
