Ward 1 Coun. Sonya Sharp questioned aquatic facility hours during the Jan. 13 Public Hearing Meeting of Council. She said that patrons at many community pools are wondering why there are restrictions on hours of operation.
“Why do we have such restrictions around the hours of some of the pools, and what can be done to… get them opened longer,” Sharp asked.
Sonya Sharp is another councillor hearing the voices of the people. ‘Don’t try to make something out of this bylaw. Just repeal it and let’s move on to the things Calgarians really need us to be working on.’”
“Ward 1 Coun. Sonya Sharp said that she wasn’t sure what the amendments to the bylaw were aiming to accomplish. ‘I have not heard any demand from my constituents and Calgarians more generally for these changes,’ she said. ‘So, I think what we saw last year that even support on council was pretty lukewarm at best.’” // “Mian also refuted councillors who claimed that perhaps committees shouldn’t exist if a decision could just be overturned at council. ‘I think the better question is what is the point of Council. Council is the final body to make all decisions, and we consider what a committee says but it is not the final body,’ she said. ‘If that was the case, you’re going to allow only half of your councillors to make decisions for the entire city and that’s not right.’”
“‘There shouldn’t be any hidden agendas. What I feel is some members of the current council may have had a hidden agenda and pulled the wool over the eyes of Calgarians. That’s my biggest thing. There are people who came to this council who made promises as they were campaigning and then did a 180.’”
“Coun. Sonya Sharp said that while she supports increasing Calgary's tree canopy, she is hesitant to support policies that potentially place restrictions on residents' property rights. ‘I'm hearing a little bit of concern about how the city tends to regulate what Calgarians do with their own property,’ she said. ‘I think we need to be mindful that this is an issue that gets complicated very quickly. I don't believe we should be dictating what Calgarians do with their own property unless it's affecting other people.’ Sharp also argued there are occasionally valid reasons for Calgarians to cut down their trees, such as when they are aging or diseased.”
“‘It's improper to bring to council things that are not within its mandate, like the bag bylaw, the climate emergency,’ says Ward 1 Coun. Sonya Sharp. ‘These things are not for us to be focusing on. We should be focusing on taxes, infrastructure, public safety - the things that are clearly within our mandate, that matter to people. I signed up to represent Calgarians and bring their voices to the horseshoe - not to push things through, or ideologies.’”
“I don’t want to sit here and be an armchair quarterback but I’m in the right place to be able to shed some light on what’s happened considering I’ve been at Ground Zero since June 5.”
Sharp feels Gondek should have “parked the drama, asked for help and got things fixed.”
