The primary responsibility of city council is to remain accountable and responsive to the needs and demands of the electorate. When proposing dramatic changes in social and economic objectives for St. Albert, it is not sufficient to state that you are simply hired to make decisions for the electorate.
1. No member of the current sitting council campaigned on downtown redevelopment as a platform. It’s tough to argue that you are making decisions on behalf of the electorate when they were never asked to provide input into the need or desire for downtown redevelopment.
2. The scale of the Downtown Area Redevelopment Plan (DARP) by itself warrants direct input from the voter. It’s quite likely that none of the current incumbents will be around 20 years from now when the redevelopment projects are fully completed and the costs are to be paid. How can you make decisions that are so broad and will impact so many without getting direct input and consent from voters? Especially when the scope greatly exceeds the time in office for our current politicians.
3. We have a municipal election in less than three months. What better way to make a decision on behalf of the voter than to directly consult with them? The public deserves to know what DARP is, how much it will cost, the reason why we need to do it and why it will succeed. Why not wait three months for a plan that covers 20 years?
4. There simply is not enough information to make an effective decision. There are questions about costs, economics, environmental and social impacts, all of which have not been answered. I do not know how elected officials can make an informed decision in such a vacuum of information.
I expect more of city council than to read their statement that they will follow the minimum legislative requirements in the Municipal Government Act regarding plebiscites. DARP may be a daring economic and social vision that may move St. Albert boldly into the future or it may be another costly misadventure. A community is built not by city planners and politicians, but rather by everyone who calls St. Albert home. If DARP will not be directly decided upon by the people in a plebiscite, it should at least be explained and discussed during the election.
The job of a politician is not to make decisions in a vacuum without input from its electorate, it is our job to ask your opinions and represent your voice when making decisions.
Cam MacKay, St. Albert
