WEEKLY UPDATE - SEP 23

Welcome back to the Weekly Wrap Up! The agendas were heavy at Committees last week. A few things are coming up to Council for further discussion, so for now I’ll focus on what was decided at Committee

At Community and Public Services we heard our annual update on Edmonton’s Indigenous Framework. It was a great opportunity to reflect on the four roles the City plays as we work towards better relations with Indigenous peoples. We heard examples on how we are taking action in our roles as Listener, Connector, Partner, and Advocate. I’m grateful for the Indigenous leaders and voices that continue to guide us in our work. Learn more about the framework here: https://www.edmonton.ca/city_government/initiatives_innovation/community-engagement-indigenous-framework

At Urban Planning, we heard about the River Valley Planning Modernisation project. The City has been doing great work to make sure we have an updated framework for how we manage and protect this invaluable community asset. I had two suggestions as the teams work to finalise the plans.

The first was clarifying our commitment to dialogue with Indigenous rights holders in river valley management. In addition to hearing from Indigenous Edmontonians, it is critical that we honour the government to government relations called for in Treaty and our own MOUs.

The second was asking for greater clarity about how the many policies that apply to the river valley will be used to inform different decisions we may face. I hope that having a simple flowchart will make it easier for Edmontonians to engage with these decisions.

At Executive Committee, funding for seven new affordable housing developments were approved, including three in O-day’min. I’m excited to see the City investing in these critical projects, and am grateful to the agencies who brought these excellent projects forward. Engagement on these developments will begin in the coming months, so be on the lookout if you’re in Wîhkwêntôwin, Downtown, and McCauley. Building more affordable housing is one of the key ways we can address the housing crisis in Edmonton and strengthen our community as a whole.

That’s all for this week! There are no Council meetings this week as many of us are headed to the Alberta Municipalities Conference in Red Deer. The Weekly Wrap Up will be back in two weeks - enjoy the beautiful fall weather until then!