St. Albert city council's first meeting of the month is shaping up to be a quick study, as the April 4 agenda includes just a couple of items not set to be passed on consent.
First, council will debate and decide on an updated off-site levies bylaw, which would have passed all three required readings last month if not for Coun. Mike Killick's lone opposition vote.
As the Gazette previously reported, the updated off-site levy bylaw includes a substantial hike to the one-time fee that developers, including the city, will need to pay when building a new road-based project.
Last year the road levy stood at $202,118 per hectare of development, and if the bylaw update passes third reading on Tuesday, the rate will jump to $299,797 per hectare.
Council heard last month that the proposed rate hike stems from significant cost estimate increases for nearly half of the 27 currently planned road projects, and the corresponding need to start saving for any future front-ending costs that may arise.
Killick said last month he opposed the bylaw update because he wanted administration and local developers to have more time to work out any outstanding issues that developers have regarding the levy increase.
In response to the proposed increase, the non-profit advocacy group for developers, the Urban Development Institute-Edmonton Metro (UDI-EM), sent council a letter last month saying that the organization would consider making an appeal to the Alberta Land and Property Rights Tribunal if the increase was to pass.
Possible changes to e-scooter program
Coun. Sheena Hughes and Coun. Killick are seeking some minor changes to the permanent e-scooter program that council approved last month under a free market and low regulation paradigm.
Hughes has put forward a motion that seeks to reinstate the 60 e-scooter fleet size that companies like Bird Canada and Lime can deploy in St. Albert, as was seen in the pilot project from 2021-2022, and removed when permanent program was approved just two weeks ago.
Killick is seeking to rescind the requirement for all e-scooter riders to wear a helmet, except for those under the age of 18. As well, Killick has proposed making ‘tandem riding’ (two people on a scooter at once), a prohibited practice in St. Albert.
Millennium Park design changes
A new park space planned for downtown St. Albert that's been in development since 2016 is getting some last minute design changes from council on April 4.
After a nearly hour long conversation during a meeting last month, council and administration agreed to hold a workshop to see what changes could be made to the design of Millennium Park before the city pays a consultant up to $337,100 to do detailed design work on the project prior to the end of the year.
Council heard on March 7 that a request for proposals for the detailed design work has been ready to publish since January, and as such, the workshop with council represents a last chance effort to tweak the project without causing major delays.
Killick told the Gazette that he thought the park could be bolder given the project's $15.8 million price tag, however, he said he had no intentions of proposing further additional ammenities to the space as he didn't want to add any costs.
The Gazette will have an article dedicated to council's Millennium Park workshop in the Thursday, April 6 edition of the newspaper.
