May 2023 newsletter

Hi Ward 1,

Happy May! It has been a busy spring so far for the Ward 1 Office. I appreciate many of you writing in to make us aware of springtime issues including storm drains, parks and pathway conditions, and spring clean-up!

I am so excited to celebrate the arrival of spring and summer with so many of you as we begin to enjoy time in our beautiful Ward 1 parks and communities.

As always, if you'd like to request my attendance at your event, community association meeting, or have a question or concern for my office, please do not hesitate to reach out!

I want to take a moment to say a big thank you to all of the volunteers who participated in the Pathway and River Cleanup from May 5th to May 7th this year. This event would not be possible without the help of hundreds of registered volunteers. During this three-day event, Calgarians helped to clean up the litter from pathways, parks and riverbanks that has collected over the winter months. If you missed out and want to join next year, volunteer registration occurs in February and March, so keep an eye out! A big thank you again to all of the volunteers.

—Sonya Sharp

The City continues to face challenges with staffing at its recreation facilities. In order to maintain adequate staffing at other facilities over the summer, The City has made the difficult choice to close Shouldice Aquatic Centre over the summer, beginning June 26. 

To support this change, nearby Foothills Aquatic Centre will increase operations from four to five days a week beginning July 4. 

It is that time of year! You may have began to see signs in your community about spring clean-up of the gravel and debris on our roads and neighbourhood streets.

The City’s Spring Clean-up street sweeping program removes debris and materials from winter operations on roadways and cycling areas. The program begins in mid-April and runs through June, with community sweeping happening Monday through Friday.

There have been changes this year to make it easier for residents to learn about the schedule, to make sure all vehicles are moved in time for the sweeping. The City of Calgary is providing more flexible hours for residential parking during this time, updated technology tools including live sweeping maps, and has developed more visible street signage. Learn more about the program and view the schedule at calgary.ca/sweep.

Calgarians have access to almost 8300 hectares of actively maintained parkland and natural areas and Parks also oversees the maintenance of approximately 765 hectares of boulevards. All of this land means we have a lot of grass to maintain and mow in all corners of the city.

The City offers different levels of maintenance for different spaces depending on how they are used. Sports fields might have more than 20 mowing cycles per season, while small parks may have 7-10, and major boulevards about 4. Wet weather, like we sometimes see in spring, makes the soil soft can can lead to heavy equipment sinking into the ground. Longer periods of wet weather can therefore cause delays to routine maintenance. We appreciate your patience when this happens!

Concerns about Parks maintenance can be reported by calling 311 or visiting calgary.ca/311.

The City of Calgary wants to hear from you about the past, present and future of your community and the surrounding South Shaganappi Communities: Banff Trail, McKay Point, Montgomery, Parkdale, Saint Andrews Heights, University Heights, University District, Varsity, and The University of Calgary.

Your input will help shape a plan  to guide the evolution of these communities over the next 30 years. The local area plan will provide guidance and direction when ideas for new development, investment and community improvement are proposed or considered within this area in the future. Learn more and provide input at calgary.ca/shaganappi.

We also encourage you to get involved by joining the South Shagannappi Communities Working Group. The City of Calgary is looking for a broad and diverse range of people to join the working group, including: Local residents—owners and renters, people of all ages—from youth and young professionals to seniors, local business owners, members of community-based groups, and more. Applications are open until May 23, 2023. 

Last week, Council's Infrastructure and Planning Committee, chaired by Councillor Sharp, heard a report from City Administration on the possibility of a closed Transit system through the installation of fare gates as a measure to improve Transit safety. 

Administration's report concluded that a fully closed Transit system is not feasible for Calgary given the existing design constraints of many stations. It found that a partially-closed system may be possible, but Administration found insufficient evidence based on the experiences of other cities.

Councillor Sharp had hoped to see costs attached to both options in order to fully evaluate the best solution for Calgary. Even so, she was pleased to support Administration's recommended option for improved Transit safety: an enhanced staffing model that will see more peace officers, and more HELP team (formerly DOAP team) staff deployed on Transit around new regional hubs. 

Calgary needs solutions for Transit safety now, not five years from now. Councillor Sharp and her colleagues will continue to evaluate the steps The City has taken so far to improve Transit safety, and remains willing to take any and all further steps that are needed. 

A final decision on these Transit safety improvements will be made at Council's next Regular Meeting in June.