[Boris2k7]

As you guys know, there is an election coming up in October. This could be an important one, not because we are going to see a new mayor (Bronco is pretty well entrenched) but because the possible shakeup of the Aldermans positions. It is also going to be interesting to see what the arguments and issues are (ex. West LRT)

I will update this post with information as time goes on...

2007 General Election Information (http://www.calgary.ca/portal/server.pt?open=512&objID=295&parentname=CommunityPage&parentid=3&mode=2&in_hi_userid=2&cached=true)

Date: Monday, October 15, 2007
Time: 10:00-17:00

Offices:
Mayor
Alderman: Wards 1-14
Public Trustees: Wards 1&2, 3&4, 5&10, 6&7, 8&9, 11&13, 12&14
Seperate Trustees: Wards 1&2+Cochrane, 3&5+Airdrie, 4&7, 6&8, 9&10+Chestermere&Area, 11&12, 13&14

2007 Ward Map & Information (http://www.calgary.ca/portal/server.pt/gateway/PTARGS_0_0_774_295_0_43/http%3B/content.calgary.ca/CCA/City+Hall/2007+General+Election/Ward+Maps+Voting+Stations+and+Candidates/Ward+Map.htm)

http://img210.imageshack.us/img210/9529/wards2007afa2.gif

Candidates:

Mayor

Bertram, David
Bronconnier, Dave (http://www.joindave.com/) <-- Incumbent
Fielding, Elizabeth Kaur
Foster, Allan
Heck, Harry
Jenkins, Sandy (http://www.electsandyjenkins.com/)
Kassam, Alnoor (http://www.goalnoor.com/)
Sunstrum, Jonathan Joseph (JJ)
Zhao, Jeremy (http://www.jeremyzhao.com/)Ward 1

Banks, Jennifer
Hodges, Dale <-- Incumbent
Perrault, NormandWard 2

Avramenko, Terry
Del Re, Daniel M.
Lowe, Gord <-- Incumbent
Magliocca, BiagioWard 3

Chahal, George
Larocque, Helene <-- Incumbent
Stevenson, JimWard 4

Evans, Richard
Hawkesworth, Bob <-- Incumbent
Peterson, AlexWard 5

El-Rafih, Mohamed
Jones, Ray <-- IncumbentWard 6

Berglund, Rosemary
Burrows, Craig <-- Incumbent
Connelly, Joe
Istvanffy, James Donald
Kohut, JamesWard 7

Aithal, Jag
Eldridge, Barry
Farrell, Druh <-- Incumbent
Terlesky, MerleWard 8

Chapman, Steve (http://www.ward8.com/)
King, Madeleine <-- Incumbent
Luhnau, Lindsay
Mar, John (http://www.johnmar.ca)Ward 9

Ceci, Joe <-- Incumbent
Koenig, Al
Waciak, StanWard 10

Chabot, Andre <-- Incumbent
Dossa, NargisWard 11 (No Incumbent)

Matthews, Dave
Murray, James M. (Jim)
Pincott, Brian
Rockwell, Jim
Whelan, EvonneWard 12

Halfyard, Nick
McIver, Richard William (Ric) <-- IncumbentWard 13 Acclaimed

Colley-Urquhart, Diane Marie <-- IncumbentWard 14 Acclaimed

Fox-Mellway, Linda <-- Incumbent
List of Candidates for Trustees (http://www.gov.calgary.ab.ca/citybeat/public/2007/09/release.20070917_143918_13520_0)

[Boris2k7]

Ald. Barry Erskine bows out
Kim Guttormson , Calgary Herald
Published: Wednesday, September 12, 2007

Long-time civic politician Barry Erskine, who faced a rocky term in office over the past three years, has decided to retire.

Erskine, who ran unopposed in the last election, said Wednesday he won't be seeking re-election on Oct. 15.
The news caught many city hall watchers off guard, because the five-term has maintained he was running. As early as Monday's council meeting he told media he grew back his trademark mustache because it matched campaign literature from 2004, when he was acclaimed.

His sudden move leaves just one known contender seeking the Ward 11 seat - environmentalist Brian Pincott announced his intentions two months ago - and doesn't leave much time for any others contemplating a run.

Incumbents are considered tougher to beat and wide-open races typically attract more candidates. But with nomination day Monday, it wouldn't leave much time for anyone who isn't already geared up with signs, a campaign team, brochures.

The past term has been stressful for the 61-year-old, who also hosts a radio gardening show.
He came under fire for his handling of a number of important area issues, including the future southwest ring road and the impact widening Glenmore Trail had on neighbouring homes.

And he flip flopped on two crucial council votes - in 2005 he changed his vote so that police were required to increase the amount of revenues raised. Last year, he initially voted against taking the money left when the province reduced the amount of education property tax it collected, but after a break asked to vote again, changed his mind.

The 2004-2007 term also saw Erskine overspend his aldermanic office budget in 2005 by almost $10,000, which he had to repay.
Long-time civic politician Barry Erskine is expected to announce his retirement this afternoon, less than a week before nominations for the Oct. 15 election.

Sources said Erskine is leaving to pursue other opportunities, but the five-term Ward 11 alderman would not confirm why he is holding a press conference.

The news will catch many city hall watchers off guard, because Erskine has maintained he was running. As early as Monday's council meeting he told media he grew back his trademark mustache because it matched campaign literature from 2004, when he was acclaimed.

kguttormson@theherald.canwest.com

[chenmau]

Pincott was at my door last week. Seemed like a nice fella. I support his idea for building city density and transit vs. roads.

[bigcanuck]

Sandy Jenkins seems to be running on the same platform as Alnoor Kassam - transportation is a key priority. Sandy wants to see the downtown LRT buried - let's hope he has a few billion in cash sitting around to make this happen during his first mandate.

[You Need A Thneed]

Last week i heard a radio ad for Alnoor, I'll paraphrase it here:

"Are you fed up with driving through the nice new bridge at Glenmore and Elbow only to be backed up longer at 37th Street? Have you been frusterated that you can't turn north onto Deerfoot from Beddington? Vote Alnoor!"

Like he thinks he can build new interchanges faster then Bronco can.

[lubicon]

I'm seriously thinking about making my decision based on my Alderman (and Mayor's) lack of support for the 'Support our Troops' on city vehicles initiative, then turning around and declaring September as 'Support our Troops' month.

Spineless decision making in my opinion. Not that it will make a difference and I hope Bronco wins again (I could really care less about my alderman).

[mersar]

I don't even live in the city, but my view so far of the two challengers for Mayor is that both are trying to wow the populace with highly unrealistic visions of the future, and really so far on only one of the many issues that should be election topics.

I haven't heard the ad that was mentioned above, but my favorite is the one where the one speaker says she passed her boss driving in his car 4 times while walking home, hinting that if they get elected then all the traffic in downtown will mysteriously disappear and driving across downtown in the middle of rush hour would take 2 minutes end to end *without* stopping. Even by burying the LRT under 8th, and even going as far as putting it under 7th as well this is not likely to occur.

If I did live in the city I'd be voting for Bronco as it stands currently.

[Boris2k7]

An article from yesterday:

Police union boss running for alderman
Colette Derworiz, Calgary Herald
Published: Tuesday, September 11, 2007

Al Koenig, president of the Calgary Police Association, has officially thrown his hat into the Ward 9 election race.

Surrounded by dozens of supporters, including several police officers and federal MP Art Hanger, Koenig launched Tuesday his run for political office at the association's headquarters.

"I feel compelled to take on the challenge of civic politics precisely because of my experience as a police officer and as head of the police association," Koenig said at a press conference Tuesday. "I'd like to serve all Calgarians now by drawing attention to some of the problems that exist in our city - from traffic to crime to the operation of city council as it relates to the police.

"I can no longer be a voice on the sidelines," he added.

Ald. Joe Ceci, incumbent in Ward 9, could not be reached for comment this morning.

The election race begins officially on Monday, which is nomination day. The municipal election is on Oct. 15.
=========================================================

Anyone know how well Ceci is doing in Ward 9?

I know I'm going to be watching Ward 8. Madelaine still has a lot of support, but her opponents are starting to grow (ex. Steve Chapman... whom I don't like)

[Wooster]

I don't even live in the city, but my view so far of the two challengers for Mayor is that both are trying to wow the populace with highly unrealistic visions of the future, and really so far on only one of the many issues that should be election topics.



It is my opinion that we should charge you tolls to drive into our city and use our stuff! ;)

Interesting that Erskine is out. I truly don't like that man and am glad he's gone. Wow, Pincott must feel like this is his lucky day. He is the only one running so far, and even if others decided to run it would be difficult to impossible to put together a meaningful campaign in such a short time. But who knows. Pincott is an NDPer who is chair of the Sierra Club here. Some right winger will probably jump into the race, just because.

[Boris2k7]

(I could really care less about my alderman).

Why? I mean, sure, the Mayor is a very important position, and is an office that leads council in one direction or another. However, Alderman are extremely influential in council and can either enact or hinder that process. They also sit on various committees and boards... where would we be if we didn't have people like the Alderbabe in CPC for these past several years?

[srperrycgy]

Any decent alternatives to Grandma Maddie in Ward 8? ;)

[bigcanuck]

Any decent alternatives to Grandma Maddie in Ward 8? ;)

How about someone who speaks more than 10 words per minute...

[Rob D]

Any decent alternatives to Grandma Maddie in Ward 8? ;)

I'd vote for Madeleine King rather than a certain chap who's running against her (former city cop I believe). He's too obsessed with parking issues and I've heard he's not too friendly toward the gay community which does represent a significant percentage of the ward 8 population. In my building alone the gay population is around 18%.

Madeleine has irritated me from time to time during her term in office but I do believe she has the best interest of the Beltline community at heart. She gets my vote if I am still in Calgary on election day or for the advance polls. I have to be out of my condo (and Calgary) by October 30th.

[chenmau]

Why? I mean, sure, the Mayor is a very important position, and is an office that leads council in one direction or another. However, Alderman are extremely influential in council and can either enact or hinder that process. They also sit on various committees and boards... where would we be if we didn't have people like the Alderbabe in CPC for these past several years?

Agreed. The aldermanic position is the one political position that most closely affects people's live (vs. MLA or MP).

[Wooster]

Yeah Madeleine has her faults but she is an urbanist, and she has very close ties to Beltline and supports its goals. Chapman is downright scary. I don't know what will happen if he gets in.

Unfortunately Ceci is going to be destroyed by Koenig, I fear. Which is too bad, I like Ceci.

[Riise]

I only have one thing to say...

Josh White for Mayor!!!

Thank you for your time.

- De

[Riise]

I only have one thing to say...

Josh White for Mayor!!!

Thank you for your time.

- De

[Beltliner]

Any decent alternatives to Grandma Maddie in Ward 8? ;)

Well, if you want to retire our sitting alderthingy, and if you're thinking as I am that there's no unprintable way you're going to vote for the kook, you might want to look into Lindsay Lunhau (http://www.lindsayluhnau.ca/) and John Mar (http://www.johnmar.ca/).

[Wooster]

Thanks Riise. :D

No, I definitely won't be running for mayor.

As for John Mar - the man is a nut. I talked to him a few weeks ago and what a weirdo. Seriously, the guy doesn't really even work, he is on his parent's payroll and lives of their wealth.

[yads]

Any decent alternatives to Grandma Maddie in Ward 8? ;)

I think Lindsay Luhnau is a pretty good alternative.

[Beltliner]

As for John Mar - the man is a nut. I talked to him a few weeks ago and what a weirdo.

Aw, crappit--I was counting on the guy not being a kook. What's his issue?

[Beltliner]

As for John Mar - the man is a nut. I talked to him a few weeks ago and what a weirdo.

Aw, crappit--I was counting on the guy not being a kook. What's his issue?

[clooless]

Ric McIver, "Dr. No" I think he is nicknamed, is in my ward. For the most part I like him very much, except for the fact that he voted against moving up the smoking ban. He also supports the idea of rearranging the seating on C-Trains to better accommodate standing passengers, which I support.

I like Bronco, so I'll vote for him again, as I did in 2004.

I don't know. Civic politics in Calgary is kind of dull compared to what I experienced living in Vancouver six years ago.

[Boris2k7]

Info from another thread... regarding Bronco's campaign.

He's got a site up already too, maybe some have seen it. If not here it is: http://www.joindave.com

Here's some of the next improvement projects cited:
* New interchanges;
* Upgrades to Glenmore and Ogden Rd (Bow River Bridge);
* 52nd Street: East Glenmore to 130 Avenue.;
* Proposed upgrades to Sarcee Trail; and
* 4th Street Underpass connecting Olympic Way to East Village.

Transit:
* More transit capacity: more LRT cars, buses and shuttles;
* Construction of the new west line of the LRT; and
* Bus Rapid Transit expanded for Southeast Calgary.

Affordable Housing:
* The City of Calgary is the largest landlord with over 8000 affordable housing units through Calgary Housing Company;
* Partnered in creating 800 affordable housing units in the past six years;
* Incorporating secondary suites into new communities;
* Over the next three years, providing 1000 rent supplements to immediately assist people with housing;
* Partnering with the private sector to provide affordable housing integrated into new communities; and
* Participation in the ten-year "Committee to End Homelessness".

[Boris2k7]

A huge article regarding what happened in council this time around...

End of Term
Civic Politics City council closed the books on its three-year term at its final meeting last week. Today, the Herald reviews this council's highs and lows.
Colette Derworiz and Kim Guttormson, Calgary Herald
Published: Sunday, September 16, 2007


It was a fight that was brewing for weeks, and it boiled over at the end of a marathon session of Calgary city council on Monday.

In the 13th hour of council's final meeting before the Oct. 15 election, the mayor and one of his outspoken critics squared off in a spat over a much-politicized symbol.

Ald. Ric McIver tried for a second time to get council to allow "Support Our Troops" decals on city-owned vehicles.

Despite advice from a city lawyer that the proposal was properly put, Mayor Dave Bronconnier ruled it was too similar to an earlier motion.

McIver challenged the decision, but in the midst of the discussion the alderman took offence to a remark made by Bronconnier, launching into a testy monologue. Most of council sided with the mayor and the meeting continued.

But the battle of wills, as Ald. Madeleine King later described it, was a clear example of the regular clashes among council members that often bogged down meetings during the past three years at Calgary City Hall.

Still, as the council closed the books on an often turbulent term -- packing up their desks and preparing for their upcoming re-election campaigns -- they left the chambers knowing they had actually accomplished a fair amount for the City of Calgary.

Bronconnier, who launched his campaign Saturday for a third term as mayor, believes there have been more ups than downs during the last three years.

"There are always testy moments in every council -- you are dealing with 15 different personalities, including myself, and you are trying to balance off the needs of a million people and trying to make the best, sound public policy decisions," he told the Herald in a recent interview. "On balance, I would say this council has done an excellent job."

This latest version of city council had a memorable beginning.

Before council members had even shaken off their victory celebrations, they found themselves facing one of the biggest scandals ever witnessed at City Hall.

Margot Aftergood, who beat an incumbent to win the seat in northeast Calgary's Ward 10, was sworn in under a cloud of controversy after elections staff blew the whistle on hundreds of suspicious mail-in ballots rejected during the October 2004 vote.

Aftergood admitted her campaign team requested the ballots and resigned her council seat, although she maintained they did nothing wrong.

But her departure from council cost taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars, divided council members and forced a byelection won by community activist Andre Chabot.

The scandal also led to a provincial inspection, which concluded there was an organized attempt to stuff the ballot boxes, and saw Calgary ban mail-in ballots for this fall's election.

Five people connected to Aftergood's campaign were later charged under the Local Authorities Election Act, with three of the five convicted by the courts. Appeals are underway in two of the cases, while criminal fraud charges against another man involved in the campaign go to court this November.

"Ward 10 has certainly been a black mark, but that wasn't this council," said Keith Brownsey, a political scientist with Mount Royal College. "They came back after the 2004 election and the Ward 10 affair, and became an effective council.

"Sometime it takes a crisis like that to focus a group."

Focus was definitely needed, if not always attained, given the list of challenges.

With Calgary's population shattering the million mark, council members grappled with the city's unprecedented growth.

Criticized by some for rampant road construction -- including major improvements to 16th Avenue N. and Glenmore Trail -- others said council members finally did start to switch gears, dedicating more money to transit and finally getting redevelopment of East Village off the ground.

Council brought in new rules and loaned money to an arm's-length body to oversee the development of the blighted area east of City Hall.

On the transportation side, it approved the extension of the LRT lines into the northwest and northeast and purchased new buses and C-Train cars.

But that only scratched the surface of what was required, and the city struggled with how to pay for the rest of the much-needed infrastructure -- including more roads, increased transit service and additional recreation facilities.

Homeowners were hit with record tax increases -- 4.4 per cent in 2005, 4.4 per cent in 2006 and another four per cent this year -- and a series of new home levies designed to help pay for fire stations, community facilities and bus shelters.

In 2006, council added $25.7 million to its budget, by taking money freed up when the province agreed to collect less education tax. It added up to an almost 10 per cent tax increase on the municipal portion of the property tax, but the overall tax bill stayed the same.

The mayor also launched a battle earlier this year with the Alberta government over Calgary receiving a larger share of the property tax revenues being taken by the province.

Given that the city had already received $887 million from the province, spread over five years, as well as another $140 million a year through a federal-provincial fuel tax agreement -- both programs ending in 2010 -- some saw it as greed.

"This term did nothing other than beg for more money," said Dan Kelly, senior vice-president of legislative affairs for the Canadian Federation of Independent Business. "If that's your measure of success -- that council gets heaps of new money -- then I suppose they were quite successful, because they not only dramatically raised taxes for home and business owners, they also cajoled the province into coming to the table with bags of cash."

But other city hall watchers saw the fight with the province as necessary to secure the money needed to deal with the city's growth.

Kelly argues that while growth needs to be accommodated, this council took the easy way out by just finding new sources of revenue.

"They really didn't look at ways of doing more with their existing resources," he said. "They saw easy money on the table."

Perhaps coincidentally, the fight for long-term funding was put to bed Friday, with the Stelmach government releasing the final details of a plan that will see the city receive $3.3 billion for infrastructure needs in the next decade.

It means one of the first orders of business for the council elected Oct. 15 -- and sworn in later next month -- will be how to spend those dollars, with the west and southeast legs of the LRT high on the priority list.

City hall also wasn't immune to labour pressures experienced by the rest of Calgary, including two threatened labour disputes.

A transit strike was averted at the 11th hour and EMS workers were forced into arbitration.

While council approved money for more EMS, firefighters and police officers, it doesn't help if they can't find people willing to don the uniform.

Other city departments also had difficulty filling vacancies -- not only to address staff leaving, but for new positions created to handle the growing workload. This spring they launched an ad campaign to try to encourage more job seekers to apply to the city.

But while the provincial funding announcement let council leave on a high note, the promise of more building -- and more gridlock -- in the near future, almost everyone agrees there were contentious moments for council.

Several new bylaws were approved under pointed criticism, with the cat bylaw riling pet owners and the so-called bad behaviour bylaw, which regulated activities such as spitting and urinating in public places, upsetting advocates for the homeless.

There were also some aldermen who courted their own controversy.

Ald. Barry Erskine overspent his office budget, leading to changes in how overruns are handled.

Travel by members of council came under fire, after 14 of the 15 travelled to Newfoundland for an annual national conference, about double the number who usually attended.

And the approval by the city's audit committee for Ald. Craig Burrows to take a $12,000, 12-day governance course drew howls of protest from the public and some of his fellow council members.

And even when this council tried to do the right thing, it often tied itself in knots trying to get there.

Wrestling with how to deal with the rapidly growing homeless population, the mayor and aldermen tried to walk a fine line between helping the city's needy and putting themselves in a situation where Calgary was paying for services it feels are a provincial responsibility.

Last fall, with a recent homeless count pegging the number of people living without shelter at a conservative 3,436, council stumbled over opening an emergency shelter during a bitterly cold winter.

When the temporary building closed in the spring, just as winter returned, hundreds were again left out in the cold -- until another Band-Aid solution was devised.

Council also helped create a high-profile committee comprised of leaders from business and social agencies working on a 10-year plan it hopes will lead to all Calgarians having a permanent roof over their heads.

But some city hall watchers said council can't take credit for the creation of the committee.

"In every practical way, council has fumbled the ball on the homelessness issue," said Naheed Nenshi of the Better Calgary Campaign, which advocates for improved municipal government. "This city is completely different than it was three years ago.

"They waited until the situation was untenable."

Affordable housing also emerged as a key issue as the cost to buy a home went through the roof, though city hall watchers said council has also failed to address low-cost housing.

"We've seen a little bit of housing," said Nenshi, noting council is still turning in circles over a change that would immediately ease the situation: legalizing secondary suites.

Council members did ultimately make two decisions that will one day bring them in line with most other Canadian cities, but in both cases what seemed like a straightforward decision to many observers were divisive and, in the end, watered down.

In the fall of 2005, council voted to bring in a curbside recycling program. Eighteen months later, the plan was finally finalized -- without an organics pickup that many argued would have had the biggest environmental impact.

The strategy was sent back several times to staff to reduce the cost -- and the city's 300,000 single-family residences still won't have blue boxes on their curbs until 2009.

The renewed smoking debate again brought out critics.

Originally, council decided in 2002 the city would go smoke-free in 2008, giving businesses five years to adjust.

In the meantime, every other major city in the country again passed Calgary by.

In mid-2006, Ald. Diane Colley-Urquhart convinced enough of her colleagues to try to move up the ban, and they were successful. However, council again revisited the issue last fall, giving one-year exemptions to bingos and businesses that had built smoking rooms. Everywhere else finally went smoke-free at the beginning of 2007.

Yet Mount Royal's Brownsey believes council did a good job in the three years they were given.

"It's been a reasonably effective council," he said.

But Nenshi, who also teaches at Mount Royal College, believes the only major accomplishment was moving the smoking bylaw forward a year.

"For this term -- I'm a teacher, so I can grade them -- I give them a solid D," said Nenshi. "They get a B for effort, but a D for execution."

cderworiz@theherald.canwest.com
kguttormson@theherald.canwest.com


Ward 4

Bob Hawkesworth

Thorough Bob Hawkesworth is one of council's senior statesmen, taking an intense interest in social issues such as the amount of affordable housing in the city.

Red Bob, a nickname from his time as an NDP MLA, carried a double workload this term, serving as president of the Alberta Urban Municipalities Association.

Those responsibilities took him away from some of his council duties, with a colleague criticizing the number of meetings he missed last year. The position also gives him a place on the provincial stage.

But the soft-spoken Hawkesworth manages to juggle his dual roles, and is an alderman who tries to find compromise when his colleagues are at odds.

And he also pushes for environmental issues, advocating for the district energy plant that will provide heating and cooling to downtown municipal buildings and much of the East Village.

Ward 8

Madeleine King

Madeleine King started this term battling cancer, and that fight set the stage for the following three years.

Coming off a narrow election victory, King began taking a harder line on taxes and other fiscal issues, a move away from her artsy, society image.

Her ward, with its dual nature, saw her trying to deal with both the up and downsides of the boom.

The explosion of construction in the Beltline and communities containing some of the city's most high-priced houses had King facing pressure to address high property taxes tied to a home's value.

At the same time, with a ward encompassing the downtown, the two-term alderman was challenged with concerns about growing crime and homelessness. Parking was also a recurring issue.

She faced criticism when the John Howard Society wanted to place a halfway house in an affluent neighbourhood, representing both the area it wanted to move to and the area it was being evicted from.

Ward 14

Linda Fox-Mellway

Former businesswoman Linda Fox-Mellway, who has represented Ward 14 since 1995, quietly gets things done.

The four-term alderman has been one of the key players behind the city's three-year budgeting strategy, taking over the finance committee as chairwoman this past year.

Fox-Mellway pushed for a solution on how the new downtown library and a redeveloped Bow Valley College could share a city block, spearheaded improvements to Highway 22X and found other ways to ease traffic congestion for residents in the deep south.

A likable person, she's never afraid to ask what some would see as silly questions on the floor of council.

[Boris2k7]

A second article also in today's Herald:

Looking at the record: "It's been a reasonably effective council," says Mount Royal College political science professor Keith council's overall efforts "a B for effort, but a D for execution."
Calgary Herald
Published: Sunday, September 16, 2007

Ward 1

Dale Hodges

Dale Hodges is the longest serving member of Calgary city council.

First elected in 1983, the Ward 1 alderman -- and council veteran -- is best known as a pack rat whose office is filled with reports from his earliest days as a civic politician. He often challenges city staff with queries about decades-old reports and wows his colleagues with historical information.

But the 66-year-old alderman also enjoys musing about the "capers" involving his council colleagues.

Hodges, who's consistently one of the lowest spenders and least frequent travellers on council, strolled into a committee room earlier this year to cast the deciding vote asking Ald. Craig Burrows to pay back $12,000 approved for a corporate governance course. Hodges later insisted he didn't even know the vote was on the agenda. Nudge-nudge, wink-wink.

The eight-term alderman also spends a great deal of time working -- often quietly -- on issues in his ward.

When an asphalt plant riled residents in one of his communities, he considered a court injunction to shut it down before it closed on its own. He also fought to keep paved paths out of Nose Hill Park.

Ward 2

Gord Lowe

Considered by many to be the mayor's right-hand man, Gord Lowe was handed the reins to the city's budgeting process and shepherded in the first three-year budget.

The plan was not a hit with all his council colleagues, but Lowe and others argued it gave Calgarians an idea of what they could expect in terms of property tax increases.

In the second year of the process, the mayor defied tradition and asked that Lowe be appointed to another term as chairman of the finance committee, causing consternation among some of his peers.

Lowe, in his second term as alderman, is detail-oriented and one of few who reads the minutes of all committee meetings. That led to Lowe raising the alarm over the audit committee approving a $12,000 course for a fellow alderman.

Council's representative on the Enmax board, Lowe with his neighbouring alderman pushed to have the northwest extension of the LRT completed two years early. It will be finished next year.

Ward 5

Ray Jones

Concerned the city is falling behind in providing recreation facilities to its citizens, Ray Jones this year asked for a study that would outline how many indoor and outdoor sports facilities are needed.

Jones also worked closely with those pushing for a recreation centre in the city's northeast and mediated a deal between hockey and soccer to keep Fairview arena in play.

In the same spirit, he asked the city to investigate creating emergency funds for community associations that find themselves under the gun.

An alderman for 14 years, Jones tends to stay under the radar. He chaired the aldermanic office co-ordinating committee, a thankless job overseeing how his colleagues spend their budgets and follow policy. He was instrumental over the past three years in making sure low-income transit passes had funding.

Last year, Jones supported moving up a citywide no-smoking ban -- but only after council agreed to give one-year extensions to bingos and those businesses that already built smoking rooms.

Ward 6

Craig Burrows

Known for putting his foot in his mouth, Craig Burrows is never at a loss for words.

The alderman, who chaired the audit committee during his second term on council, came under fire this year when the committee approved spending $12,000 for him to take an education course. Although the move alienated several of his colleagues, Burrows took it all in stride -- even suggesting the alderman who revealed the issue was an "old bureaucrat" who thinks bureaucrats know everything.

It wasn't the first -- and likely won't be the last -- time Burrows has made inappropriate comments.

Early in his term, he suggested there was nothing to do in Calgary.

And Burrows drew an angry response this spring when he said police should set up checkstops outside bars defying the city's new smoking bylaw. The comments led to calls for his resignation from his seat on the police commission.

But Burrows is a strong advocate for policing, often taking motions to council asking for extra tools for front-line officers. He also spearheaded a move to post aldermanic expenses on the Internet.

Ward 9

Joe Ceci

Joe Ceci, a former social worker, was often tagged over the past three years as one of council's social consciences.

During the term, he defended installing more public toilets downtown, an ethical procurement policy and a social action plan for the inner city. He was also critical of a bad behaviour bylaw, worried it would unfairly target the homeless.

Ceci was also one of the more vocal council members pushing for increased affordable housing units and has argued that the city needs to spend less on transportation and more on other issues.

Council's representative for the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, Ceci takes a measured approach during most council debates. He was one of six aldermen who pushed to have the city's smoking ban moved up by a year. And he wanted the city to look at banning cellphone use while driving.

Ceci also launched a weekly cleanup of the riverbank, rounding up volunteers to collect garbage along the downtown shore.

Ward 10

Andre Chabot

The fourth time was the charm for Andre Chabot, who won the Ward 10 seat in a byelection after a vote-rigging scandal led to the resignation of the alderman elected in the 2004 election.

Chabot, one of two rookies on city council, got up to speed quickly -- often boring his council colleagues with his newly acquired but extensive knowledge of the procedure bylaw during meetings. He immediately became a proponent for stronger rules -- including voter identification -- during civic elections.

Chabot also called for a safety audit on Deerfoot Trail after a police officer was hurt on the job.

And the Ward 10 alderman was a strong voice for the common man, even arguing during the so-called bad behaviour bylaw that Calgarians should be allowed to spit on the road without facing a fine.

Ward 11

Barry Erskine

In his final term as an alderman, Barry Erskine faced a number of community crises that took their toll.

In a ward fraught with transportation problems, Erskine, who represented the area for 15 years and isn't running again, got caught between trying to move cars around and trying to keep residents happy.

With the Glenmore-Elbow-5th Street interchange, those living near the thoroughfare were upset the new road came closer than promised and that led to a confusing battle with council where Erskine proposed buying out the unhappy homeowners.

Erskine also got himself into trouble after wading into the southwest ring road negotiations, vowing to stop two proposed connector roads opposed by the community. However, a signed deal between the province and Tsuu T'ina came to light that guaranteed at least one of the roads, a document many argued Erskine should have been aware of. He also overspent his 2005 office budget by almost $10,000 and flip-flopped on a couple of contentious council decisions, changing their outcomes.

Ward 12

Ric McIver

Ric McIver, who considers himself council's fiscal watchdog, is one of the more outspoken members of council.

Not afraid to publicly trade barbs with his colleagues, McIver irked many when he pushed -- twice -- to have "Support Our Troop" decals placed on city-owned vehicles. As with many of his initiatives, it wasn't the substance as much as the style that set off other council members.

Nicknamed Dr. No for his oppositional tactics, McIver opposed the city's new three-year budgeting process, arguing it didn't give the majority of aldermen enough input into the process.

He also continually voted against most things related to redeveloping the East Village, because he opposed the tax increment financing scheme being used to pay for infrastructure upgrades. The theory is the improvements attract new development, increasing property values, increasing tax revenues. McIver argues it's a subsidy for developers.

Over the past three years, he has also tried to get council to reform its campaign finance rules and questioned the cost of the proposed recycling program.

Ward 13

Diane Colley-Urquhart

Non-smokers across the city welcomed Diane Colley-Urquhart's successful attempt to move up the city's smoking ban.

The former nurse led the charge, resulting in smoke-free public places a year early.

The Red Devil, as she's known to some, can be difficult to categorize. An alderman for seven years, Colley-Urquhart was the only member of council to not attend a conference in Newfoundland, and then criticized her colleagues for attending, arguing the locale, not the meeting, was the draw. It led to some cold shoulders.

But she hasn't hesitated in doing open battle with her fellow aldermen.

She also had a nasty public dispute with Ald. Craig Burrows over a $12,000 course he took, paid for through the audit committee he chaired.

Over the past three years, she's both loudly criticized the mayor and worked closely with him on a number of projects, including topping up pay and benefits for military reservists who work for the city.

Ward 7

Druh Farrell

Druh Farrell has no trouble taking anyone on -- including the City of Calgary.

As one of two downtown aldermen, Farrell routinely raises concerns about crime, litter and how the homeless are treated in the city.

Farrell also keeps a close eye on plans for the East Village, a rundown area east of City Hall. She also has a grand vision for the redevelopment of Eau Claire Market, refusing to accept shoddy plans for her ward or the rest of the city.

The two-term alderman may be small in stature, but she often strongly voices her concerns on causes she believes in.

Farrell was outspoken against the vote-rigging scandal in Ward 10 and fought for council after their travel to a conference in Newfoundland became an issue.

Ward 3

Helene Larocque

In her first term as alderman, after winning a close race, Helene Larocque sought to distinguish herself as the representative of the "common man."

She tried to raise whether city services, such as rec fees, were still affordable for families.

With almost all her campaign funding coming from union donations, there were concerns she would be coloured by that. The alderman for the city's largest ward often rose to question the city's relationship with its employees.

During the transit dispute this spring -- where a strike was averted at the 11th hour -- Larocque frequently stood during council to challenge the city's approach to negotiations. She raised concerns after being asked to leave a strategy meeting because only the three members of council's personnel committee were allowed to attend.

Larocque also pushed to get funds added to this year's budget so that planning for a northeast rec centre could continue. However, she then voted against the budget, saying the tax increase was too high.

[Boris2k7]

And another one, this time about Bronco

Mayor will be tough to defeat
Colette Derworiz, Calgary Herald
Published: Sunday, September 16, 2007

Dave Bronconnier could face up to a dozen competitors for the mayor's seat this fall, but city hall observers say the incumbent has the upper hand heading into the Oct. 15 civic election.

"It's a formidable challenge," said Dan Kelly, senior vice-president of legislative affairs with the Canadian Federation of Independent Business.

"Incumbents are rarely toppled."

Bronconnier, who officially launched his re-election campaign Saturday, said he will run on his record over the past six years.

"It's been nothing short of high performance in terms of delivering on the infrastructure needs that Calgarians were looking for," the mayor told reporters, just before giving a speech to about 300 supporters who attended his kickoff barbecue at Canada Olympic Park.

"Within six years we have put over $2 billion into infrastructure -- over a billion into light-rail transit and a billion into expanding road capacity.

"That's pretty important," he said.

Bronconnier, 44, said securing the 10-year municipal funding deal -- returning up to $3.3 billion to Calgary over the next decade -- with the province on Friday was one of his biggest accomplishments during his past three years on city council.

Other successes he listed in his speech included: adding more park space; hiring additional police officers, firefighters and EMS staff; upgrading the water and wastewater treatment facilities; and, reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

But two candidates who have already launched their campaigns to run against Bronconnier were quick to criticize the current mayor's confrontational style with the province and his record at city hall.

Alnoor Kassam, who was embroiled in controversy before he launched his campaign for mayor, said he doesn't believe Bronconnier needed to clash with the provincial government in order to secure the money.

"It's just pure politics," he said, noting he saw Bronconnier as a "whiner" when it came to the fight with the province.

Another candidate, Sandy Jenkins, said the mayor was "extremely lucky" that Stelmach's approval rating was so low in Calgary, though he also believes the province has shortchanged the city when it comes to money for infrastructure.

Jenkins agreed the mayor's fight with the province over infrastructure dollars wasn't necessary to secure the long-term deal.

"A lot of Calgarians aren't happy about it," Jenkins said. "Bronco's a whiner . . . he bullied people. That's what I am hearing."

As for Bronconnier's record over the past six years, his competitors say it's got flaws.

"He's built all of these new communities without the proper infrastructure," said Jenkins.

"His record is one of urban sprawl and fighting with the province for no reason."

Still, Kelly said the candidates running against Bronconnier will have their work cut out for them.

"The negotiation of the provincial dollars aside, name recognition alone at the municipal level is a massive challenge," Kelly said.

Bronconnier also has at least a $1 million war chest heading into the fall campaign.

Other potential candidates who have pulled nomination papers include David Bertram, Barry Eldrige, Doug Service, J.J. Sunstrum and Jeremy Zhao.

There are also ads running on the C-Trains prompting Calgarians to a website (www.harryformayor.ca), though there is no name or other information on the site. It does, however, criticize several council policies.

If re-elected, Bronconnier said he would continue to build on his record.

His top priorities include transportation, safe communities, accountability, affordable housing and the environment.

His three-year plan includes adding low-cost housing, turning East Village into a great community, building recreational and cultural facilities, and putting more money into public transit -- including building the west leg of the LRT.

cderworiz@theherald.canwest.com

[Boris2k7]

Election time!

Election campaign kicks off today
Deadline for filing papers to run for office
Kim Guttormson, Calgary Herald
Published: Monday, September 17, 2007

Offices have been opened, volunteers enticed, signs pounded into lawns and today the official race to claim a seat on city council begins.

Candidates will troop to the chambers they hope to occupy four weeks from now and file their nomination papers, plunking down $100 dollars and the same number of signatures. The contest entry for mayor is $500.

As of late Friday afternoon, 13 people had taken out nomination papers to run for mayor, while a total of 53 people had expressed an interest in campaigning in one of the 14 aldermanic wards.

While the intent is to make running for municipal office accessible, critics argue there are still a number of barriers to a level playing field.

Naheed Nenshi, with the Better Calgary Campaign, which advocates for improved municipal government, said in a city the size of Calgary it takes about $40,000 to run a campaign for alderman and $500,000 to make a serious stab at the mayor's chair.

But those already holding office have an advantage, Nenshi argues, because they have three years to fundraise as alderman or the mayor before the next election.

"There is the enormous power of the incumbent," said Nenshi, who made an unsuccessful bid in Ward 3 in 2004, which didn't have an incumbent.

He said other than Diane Danielson, who lost in Ward 10 in the last election, "I don't even remember the last time we saw an incumbent go down.

"It's a fact incumbents can fundraise with abandon."

In this election, only one alderman has said he isn't running again. Barry Erskine's surprise announcement just five days ago leaves Ward 11 an open race, although many criticized the move as not leaving contenders enough time to get a proper campaign together.

Two alderman -- Diane Colley-Urquhart and Linda Fox-Mellway -- may be acclaimed this year, as no one had taken out papers for those wards. However, four people took forms from the city clerk's office and didn't specify where their interests lie.

But any difficulties in taking on a sitting politician -- in some cases challengers would argue running against an incumbent with baggage helps -- doesn't deter everyone.

Two wards -- 6 and 8 -- could see six candidates in each. Two others -- 5 and 10 -- may entertain a two-person, head-to-head battle.

Dan Kelly, with the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, keeps an eye on what happens at City Hall and wouldn't mind seeing new faces on council.

"Hopefully we'll get some new blood that may be interested in looking at both increasing accountability and spending control at council," Kelly said.

Anyone wishing to run in the Oct. 15 election -- including candidates for the city's two school boards -- must file their nomination papers by noon today.

Returning officer Barb Clifford said they then have 24 hours to decide whether they really wish to run, with an opportunity to withdraw before the official list is set at noon Tuesday.

The person who wins the mayoral race next month will earn an annual salary of $160,048. The aldermen forming the next council will each take home $85,164.64 a year, a six per cent raise over 2007 wages.

Those salaries are all taxable.

Council members are also eligible for benefits that include a stipend for acting as deputy mayor, a car allowance and $3,000 a year that can be used for additional health care, computer equipment or tuition for their children.

But most would argue the elected officials will work for their money.

In a survey done as part of the council compensation review that led to the six per cent increase for aldermen, they estimated they spent an average of 62 hours a week on council duties, including an average of about 21/2 nights a week and almost four weekend days a month.

kguttormson@theherald.canwest.com

[Boris2k7]

On the Trustee side of things:

Incumbents few for Foothills school board
Chairman only person to declare his intentions
Sarah Mcginnis, Calgary Herald
Published: Monday, September 17, 2007

With the election for the school board kicking off today, only the chair of the Foothills School Division has declared his intention to seek re-election.

But for whoever does throw a hat into the ring, there are plenty of issues to address during the campaign.

Lingering transportation issues, addressing flood damage at two area schools and securing more capital are some of the main concerns of parents within this school district located south of Calgary.

Foothills board chair Jerry Muelaner says: "There are some issues I've got to see through."

Muelaner's ward includes the communities of Longview, Turner Valley and Black Diamond.

Trustee Rhonda Longson, who represented students in the Blackie and Cayley areas for three years, and Faye Lipitt, who has represented the northwest part of the school district, including Red Deer Lake and Millarville, for six years, have both said they will not campaign in the election.

Leading up to nomination day, Okotoks trustee Laurie Copland still hadn't decided whether to put her name forward for a second term.

And Doug Gardener, who represents High River, could not be reached for comment by press time.

While it may not be clear who will submit applications today, many of the campaign issues are evident.

Resolving ongoing transportation problems will generate debate in many communities.

A group of parents recently won a legal challenge against the school board after it cut service to 284 students. Parents argued the board didn't conduct proper consultations.

Board officials have countered that extensive consultation was done in the past and they had to make a choice to address ongoing transportation shortfalls, especially given provincial laws that prohibit school boards from running deficits.

Like school boards across the province, securing more capital cash is another key concern for Foothills School Division parents.

According to Statistics Canada, Okotoks is the fastest growing mid-sized city in Canada. This population explosion is creating considerable stress on limited school space.

"I would really like to get a new school here. That is the one I'd like to see. It would be a (kindergarten) to (Grade) 6 and I know it's something we're working on," Copland said.

Addressing lingering flood damage at schools in Millarville and Turner Valley are also high priorities for candidates and parents, said Muelaner.

The original portion of the Millarville Community School, built in 1951, was flooded in June 2005, causing mould and air quality problems in the basement.

The school division wanted to close the entire wing and possibly demolish it, though some parents rallied against the plan.

The board also wants to remove an older and flood-damaged portion of a school in Turner Valley.

The school board applied to the government for emergency funding, but hasn't received enough money to permanently address these situations, said Muelaner.

smcginnis@theherald.canwest.com
=========================================================

CBE trustee decides against re-election
Calgary Herald
Published: Monday, September 17, 2007

School trustee Kyle Fawcett has decided not to run for a second term representing Wards 5 and 10 with the Calgary Board of Education.

After previously indicating he was considering another campaign for the seat, the CBE issued a news release Saturday stating that Fawcett now plans to run in the next provincial election.

The 27-year-old is seeking the Progressive Conservative nomination in the riding of Calgary-North Hill.

Fawcett served as chairman of the school board's policy and audit committees.

The deadline for submission of nomination papers for the Oct. 15 civic election is noon today.

[mersar]

Two Calgary Alderman Back on Council, Both Acclaimed
Sep, 17 2007 - 12:40 PM



CALGARY/AM770CHQR - Two Calgary aldermen have been acclaimed: Diane Colley-Urqhart in Ward 13 and Linda Fox-Mellway in Ward 14.
Colley-Urqhart has been an alderman for 7 years and Fox-Mellway for 12.
4 catholic school trustees are also returning as acclaimed candidates, as well as 2 on the public school board.
The deadline to file nomination papers was noon Monday.
Two by acclamation this time around, makes it a bit less interesting election

Embattled Former School Trustee Campaigns for Re-election
Sep, 17 2007 - 12:20 PM



CALGARY/AM770CHQR - A former and highly controversial Catholic school board trustee has officially launched his campaign to be re-elected.
He came, he filed, he left.
Former catholic school board trustee Michael O'Malley did what he said he was going to do, officially declare his candidacy to return to the school board that ousted him.
This, despite the board's insistence O'Malley shouldn't be able to run while his dismissal case is still before the courts.
O'Malley doesn't believe the courts will stop his campaign.
He maintains he has plenty of elector support and that he is the subject of smear campaign.


Not too surprising, lets hope people are smart though

[Boris2k7]

Two by acclamation this time around, makes it a bit less interesting election

True, but that means we can focus more on some of the other Alderman whose seats could turn to be contested.

Honestly, I can't see who would run against the "Red Devil." Even being in her Ward, I have no idea how I really feel about her. On one hand, I dislike how she seems to gang up with Dr. No. On the other hand, she pushed the smoking issue and her office has been very good with getting updates out to us.

Plus, I only have to vote for the Mayor now.

[mersar]

Good point. It will be interesting to see the full list, which the city should be releasing pretty much any time now.

I just got the list for Cochrane, we will have a fun election out there this year. 13 people threw their name in for 6 seats on council, and 4 for Mayor. The only incumbent running is the mayor, the entire council will be different this time around (although a former council member and later Mayor is once again running for council, and current council member is also running for Mayor). Good thing is at least 2 people are pushing for a regional transit initiative, so we'll see how that goes with the voters.

[You Need A Thneed]

I did a brief look at the web pages for the three candidates I've seen with signs up in my riding (Ward 3) so far:

Helene Larocque
Jim Stevenson
George Chahal

I couldn't really find any real differences in their platforms, they all say the same things on the issues. All three run last time (IIRC). They all want affordable housing, well designed communities, better transit, etc. How do I know who to vote for if they all claim to want to do the same thing?

Then there are the scholl board trustees. In 2004, I refused a ballot for the school board trustee, because I never heard anything about any of the candidates' platforms, and if I was to vote, I pretty much would have been voting on who's name looked the coolest on the ballot. How are people supposed to vote on something like this where they hardly know what the position does, nevermind who would be the best person to take the job (of course, we also know next to nothing about the persons either).

[Boris2k7]

Then there are the scholl board trustees. In 2004, I refused a ballot for the school board trustee, because I never heard anything about any of the candidates' platforms, and if I was to vote, I pretty much would have been voting on who's name looked the coolest on the ballot. How are people supposed to vote on something like this where they hardly know what the position does, nevermind who would be the best person to take the job (of course, we also know next to nothing about the persons either).

Indeed, I'm not familiar with the board trustees either. And I don't want to distort the votes by adding my worthless voice on the issue. If the media made as much of an attempt to cover that material, it might be worth my time.

In fact, I think almost all the attention is going to be on the Mayor's seat. Which is typical.

Thanks for the info, I'm updating the front page of this thread as new information comes out.

I think once I have a full list of candidates up, I will be adding websites for each of them. You will be able to go to the first page here and click on each name to bring up their site.

[Zilla]

Second try posting this.


Date: Mon Sep 17 14:39:18 2007
Subject: Unofficial List of Candidates – 2007 Civic Election
From: Citynewsroom

-----BEGIN MD5 -----------------------------------

-----------------------------------------------------------------
CITYBEAT - CITY OF CALGARY PRESS RELEASE
-----------------------------------------------------------------

CALGARY - The following is the unofficial list of candidates
for the 2007 Civic Election.

The candidate list will not be final until noon, Sept. 18, as
candidates have 24 hours to withdraw their name from the
ballot. The official list will be available after that time.


Candidate listing for Mayor
Bertram, David
Bronconnier, Dave
Fielding, Elizabeth Kaur
Foster, Allan
Heck, Harry
Jenkins, Sandy
Kassam, Alnoor
Sunstrum, Jonathan Joseph (JJ)
Zhao, Jeremy

Candidate listing for Alderman Ward 1
Banks, Jennifer
Hodges, Dale
Perrault, Normand

Candidate listing for Alderman Ward 2
Avramenko, Terry
Del Re, Daniel M.
Lowe, Gord
Magliocca, Biagio

Candidate listing for Alderman Ward 3
Chahal, George
Larocque, Helene
Stevenson, Jim

Candidate listing for Alderman Ward 4
Evans, Richard
Hawkesworth, Bob
Peterson, Alex

Candidate Listing For Alderman Ward 5
El-Rafih, Mohamed
Jones, Ray

Candidate listing for Alderman Ward 6
Berglund, Rosemary
Burrows, Craig
Connelly, Joe
Istvanffy, James Donald
Kohut, James

Candidate listing for Alderman Ward 7
Aithal, Jag
Eldridge, Barry
Farrell, Druh
Terlesky, Merle

Candidate Listing For Alderman Ward 8
Chapman, Steve
King, Madeleine
Luhnau, Lindsay
Mar, John

Candidate listing for Alderman Ward 9
Ceci, Joe
Koenig, Al
Waciak, Stan

Candidate listing for Alderman Ward 10
Chabot, Andre
Dossa, Nargis

Candidate listing for Alderman Ward 11
Matthews, Dave
Murray, James M. (Jim)
Pincott, Brian
Rockwell, Jim
Whelan, Evonne

Candidate listing for Alderman Ward 12
Halfyard, Nick
McIver, Richard William (Ric)

Candidate listing for Alderman Ward 13
Colley-Urquhart, Diane Marie (Acclamation)

Candidate listing for Alderman Ward 14
Fox-Mellway, Linda (Acclamation)

for the trustees too, go here:
http://www.gov.calgary.ab.ca/citybeat/public/2007/09/release.20070917_143918_13520_0

[Boris2k7]

Thanks for that Zilla, I've updated the first page with the list. Trustees are contained within that link of course.

[mersar]

Alright, its time to play "Guess which Mayoral Candidates don't know Calgary":

1. The city planned to build the LRT underground in the 60's
2. Lane reversals in Calgary are being ignored
3. Calgary has no lane reversals, but vancouver has had them for decades
3. There is a halfbuilt LRT station underneath Bankers Hall (also mentioned the station under the municipal building)

Who said each during interviews today?

[Boris2k7]

#4 sounds like an Alnoor moment, which is half-true

Don't know about the other ones.

[mersar]

Surprisingly #4 isn't Alnoor.

I listened to most of the interviews they played on QR this afternoon, which had a focus on transportation. From what I gleaned from it every single candidate wants the same thing, but has no problem blasting Bronco for wanting that as well.

[freeweed]

Surprisingly #4 isn't Alnoor.

I listened to most of the interviews they played on QR this afternoon, which had a focus on transportation. From what I gleaned from it every single candidate wants the same thing, but has no problem blasting Bronco for wanting that as well.

With all due respect, because I think his "GO WLRT" idea is a needed idea, Alnoor is a freaking moron.

"In Manhattan the Subway is so safe that even CEOs ride it - our mayor never addresses this".

Yeah. I'll let the idioticness of that comment stand on its own. I see at least 5 things I could point out in how stupid that sentence was, though.

[freeweed]

[QUOTE=Rob D;3053228]I'd vote for Madeleine King rather than a certain chap who's running against her (former city cop I believe). He's too obsessed with parking issues and I've heard he's not too friendly toward the gay community /QUOTE]

What the hell? How does this even happen in this day and age? Is he trying to get the city to disallow gay marriages or something?

[Boris2k7]

I don't think so, but he's made anti-gay comments in public before. I was surprised to hear about it, but then again, the guy is very conservative, in a bad way.

Here is a rather amusing blog entry:

http://crystalgaze2.blogspot.com/2007/07/city-council-elections-2007.html

[Sir.Humphrey.Appleby]

Alright, its time to play "Guess which Mayoral Candidates don't know Calgary":

1. The city planned to build the LRT underground in the 60's
2. Lane reversals in Calgary are being ignored
3. Calgary has no lane reversals, but vancouver has had them for decades
3. There is a halfbuilt LRT station underneath Bankers Hall (also mentioned the station under the municipal building)

Who said each during interviews today?

1. Sandy Jenkins
2. Alnoor Kassam (the only new reversal since the Centre Street Bridge opened under Al Duerr was pushed by Craig Burrows, so it is not pushed forward by the current Mayor on as wide a scale envisioned by Alnoor)
3. Let me say either Jeremy Zhao, or Harry Heck.
4. Sandy Jenkins

[You Need A Thneed]

From my brief look at some of the mayoral candidates' websites, I'd say that the fact checking doesn't happen there either. And in some cases, there is a total lack of common sense and reasoning too.

Alnoor seems to think that every single suite out there is going to pass a safety check , due to the reasoning required to say this:

This process should not be subject to political interference - so long as a safety inspection approves of the suites, home owners should be allowed to rent out secondary suites.

So what do you do with suites that don't pass the safety inspection? Say that they can't rent it out? You'd have to, or else the whole thing would be meaningless. So, when 95% of suites fail the safety inspection (according to building codes), we would end up having a lot of people out on the streets.

[Boris2k7]

Election hopefuls fly out of gate
Civic candidates kick off campaigns
Colette Derworiz, Kim Guttormson and Sarah McGinnis, Calgary Herald
Published: Tuesday, September 18, 2007

Calgary's civic election campaign officially began Monday, with several hot races shaping up as 77 candidates declared their intentions to run for mayor, alderman or school board trustee.

During the three hours open to officially submit their names, candidates were already campaigning on issues such as crime, homelessness, transportation and the environment.

"I've been bitching about this city for so long, it was time to shut up or put up -- and I don't like to shut up," said Ward 7 candidate Barry Eldridge, who had to go back to the community early Monday to get 10 signatures for his nomination papers after he didn't put his name on top of one of the forms.

An incumbent, Madeleine King, made the same mistake, rushing out to the Mission community around 10 a.m. to gather another 40 of the 100 signatures needed to run.

It immediately led other candidates in Ward 8 to criticize King's record on city council.

"We all make screw-ups," King responded. "It's embarrassing."

Carol Neuman, a candidate who had planned to run in Ward 1, arrived at 11:50 a.m. to find out she had made a similar error. Because she didn't have time to return to her community to collect more signatures, she's unable to run in this fall's election.

By the noon deadline, however, a total of 77 people had filed nomination papers at a cost of $100 for trustee and alderman, and $500 for mayor -- compared to 79 people in the 2004 campaign.

The list is not official until noon today, which is the deadline to withdraw.

There are eight people who filed their papers to run for mayor against Dave Bronconnier, the incumbent who has at least $1 million in his war chest and two terms under his belt.

"The campaign officially kicks off -- four weeks of, really, an opportunity to get out there and hear what's on Calgarians' minds," said Bronconnier, who noted he didn't know who the other candidates in the race were. "I focus on my campaign."

Still, two fringe mayoral candidates pulled out all of the stops Monday when they arrived at City Hall -- with one, Harry Heck, arriving with two men dressed as the Blues Brothers and another, J.J. Sunstrum, carried into the building in shiny blue pyjamas and fuzzy buffalo slippers.

"I had second thoughts this morning about whether I wanted to run for the job as mayor," Sunstrum told reporters after he filed his papers.

When asked why he wore pajamas to nomination day, he said: "I am a bit of a mischievous person." He later returned in a suit, asking people if that was "better."

Ward 11 is the only wide-open aldermanic race, with five candidates running after Barry Erskine decided last week to retire.

"I had thought about it before," said lawyer Jim Murray, who is running in Ward 11. "It surprised me he decided not to run at that late date.

"But I was able to file my nomination papers on time."

Other than the two aldermen who were acclaimed -- Diane Colley-Urquhart and Linda Fox-Mellway -- each of the other 11 incumbents face between one and four challengers.

In Ward 6, four candidates are challenging Craig Burrows, who has had a year filled with controversy. However, Rosemary Berglund said she or one of the other candidates may drop out by noon today to avoid splitting the vote.

Meanwhile, about half of the Calgary Catholic School District was acclaimed Monday when nominations closed.

Serafino Scarpino, Linda Wellman and Marg Belcourt will all be returning to the board this fall. Newcomer Mary Martin, a registered nurse with four children, has also won her bid to replace Maureen Emond in wards 13 and 14.

Rogue trustee Michael O'Malley also submitted nomination papers to run for the separate board despite a verdict pending in a legal challenge of his removal as trustee. He won't be the only name on the ballot in wards 9 and 10, as former trustee Adam Heighes and former candidate Rosemarie Goerlitz are also vying for the seat.

In the Calgary Board of Education, current chair Pat Cochrane and former chair Gordon Dirks have both been acclaimed.

The remaining races include a mixture of stay-at-home parents, former teachers, business leaders and former politicians for Calgary voters to choose from.

The most hotly contested riding is wards 11 and 13 where four challengers have applied to replace Nancy Close. Candidates include Karen Kryczka, Neil Mackie, Kathy Power and Deborah Duncan.

cderworiz@theherald.canwest.com
kguttormson@theherald.canwest.com
smcginnis@theherald.canwest.com

http://img508.imageshack.us/img508/1060/7428424859qx4.jpg
Ald. Madeleine King, who made a mistake in her nomination papers, shows her relief after rushing out to collect 40 new signatures she needed to run. See story, Page B5.
Leah Hennel, Calgary

[Boris2k7]

Mayor faces eight challengers
Bronconnier can be beaten, say rivals
Kim Guttormson and Colette Derworiz, Calgary Herald
Published: Tuesday, September 18, 2007

Transportation, crime, affordable housing and billions in provincial infrastructure dollars came into play Monday, as nine candidates staked their claim to the mayor's chair.

Whether wearing suits or pyjamas and slippers, flanked by campaign managers or a duo dressed as the Blues Brothers, all nine hopefuls swore they were serious candidates to lead the city after Oct. 15.

"I don't have a war chest so how else do you get attention," said J.J. Sunstrum, who showed up wearing a yellow "Not For Sale" T-shirt, shiny blue pyjamas and fuzzy buffalo slippers.

While political analysts often give the campaign edge to incumbents, many of those challenging Dave Bronconnier for the job disputed that.

"The race is wide open," said contender Harry Heck, who brought the Jake and Elwood Blues look-alikes. "It's going to be a horse race."

Sandy Jenkins, a 47-year-old geophysicist, admitted it will be an uphill battle, but he doesn't believe Bronconnier is unbeatable, despite his estimated $1-million-plus campaign kitty.

"If you've got the right message, you are going to resonate with people," he said. "I've lived here for 25 years. You get tired of complaining after a while before you decide to do things about it."

Jeremy Zhao, a second year engineering student at the University of Calgary, said he wants to get people interested in the election.

"I decided to participate, rather than spoil my ballot or not vote," said Zhao, 19.

Bronconnier, seeking a third term in office, said he's running on his record.

"My last six years, the record speaks for itself, in terms of investment back into this community," he said, "but, of course, we're going to talk about the future."

Last week, the province and its municipalities signed a deal that will provide infrastructure funding for the next decade -- $3.3 billion for Calgary over 10 years, giving the new council the enviable task of deciding where to spend it.

Some, including mayoral candidate Alnoor Kassam, questioned the timing of the announcement, but Bronconnier said it was the province's call, adding, "it was three years of hard work to get the province to sign this agreement."

Monday, as the candidates were swarmed by media, they listed their priorities for the campaign: road construction and the need for increased public transit topped most lists.

Kassam said alternative solutions to the city's traffic problems, such as lane reversals and car pool lanes, need to be investigated.

Bronconnier said of the $2 billion spent on transportation over the last term, more than half went to transit.

Crime, which came to a head this summer with eight suspicious deaths in nine days, also topped the list of concerns.

"We don't need more words, we need action," said Kassam. "We need the police officers to have the permission to do it."

Bronconnier noted that council has put 350 more police officers on the street over the past three years.

Candidate Elizabeth Fielding said there needs to be a preventative approach to crime in the city, including engaging youth.

The list of candidates won't be official until noon today.

kguttormson@theherald.canwest.com
cderworiz@theherald.canwest.com

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What mayoral candidate J.J. Sunstrum lacks in campaign funding, he makes up for in pyjamas.
Leah Hennel, Calgary Herald

[Boris2k7]

Young Jeremy tackles apathy
Robert Remington, Calgary Herald
Published: Tuesday, September 18, 2007

Jeremy the giant killer is 19 years old. He works bagging groceries to help pay his way through university. His favourite movie is Lord of the Rings and his zodiac year is Dragon.

He plays piano and is the producer of Chinese Talk, a podcast about Asian stereotypes.

He stands about five feet tall and his position on civic taxation is posted on YouTube to the tune of Blue Oyster Cult's Don't Fear the Reaper.

Jeremy Zhao doesn't stand a chance of unseating Dave Bronconnier.

But of all the fringe candidates for the top job at City Hall -- one mayoral candidate showed up Monday dressed in pyjamas, another was accompanied by two guys dressed as the Blues Brothers -- Zhao deserves credit for making voter apathy his primary issue in this campaign.

"If I can get more people out to vote than the 19 per cent turnout of the last election, at the end of the day I'll be happy," said Zhao, a second-year engineering student at the University of Calgary.

Zhao showed up for nomination day at city hall with a posse of young supporters and paid his $500 nomination fee in cash -- $50s, $20s, $10s and $5s -- that he collected from friends.

His campaign is totally Internet-based, using sites like YouTube, My Space, Facebook and his own

jeremyzhao.com. On the latter, he posts links to all the other candidates running in the Oct. 15 civic election.

"I am for democracy, not for winning. I urge all Calgarians to choose carefully who they will pick and who really stands up for the people, and those who stand up for themselves. Be informed and stay critical," Zhao says on his site.

In 2004, a pitiful 19.8 per cent of the municipal electorate bothered to drag themselves to the polls in Calgary, the lowest of any major city in Canada's last rounds of municipal elections.

"It's ridiculous. It's horrible," Zhao says of voter apathy.

Other newcomers to civic politics agreed.

"I decided I can sit around and complain or do something about it," said Richard Evans, a candidate in Ward 4.

"Democracy is Job 1," said James Kohut, a Ward 6 candidate who showed up wearing a T-shirt with sheep on it that read "Be herd or not."

Kohut went so far as to suggest that the city give out random prizes to voters such as tickets to Heritage Park, the zoo or transit passes.

"We have to do everything we can to get people involved," Kohut said.

Voting in a civic election is work. Unlike provincial and federal politics, there is no party system to align voters along ideological lines. Fixed dates for municipal elections also make for less political drama leading into a campaign. Historically, voter turnout in civic politics is driven by two factors: plebiscites and competitive mayoral races.

When Edmonton mayor William Hawrelak ran unopposed in the mid-1950s, voter turnout dropped to 10 per cent. The turnout in Calgary was 38 per cent when Al Duerr retired in 2001, leaving Bronconnier in a battle against Bev Longstaff. In 2004, with Bronconnier running virtually unchallenged, turnout plummeted.

Calgary had a 45.8 per cent turnout in 1998, when water fluoridation was put to plebiscite, passing by a 55 per cent margin.

Robert Roach, director of research for the Canada West Foundation, says low municipal voter turnout is confounding.

"In many ways, it's a mystery. This is a level government where your vote and your access to politicians after the vote counts the most. Federally, you elect a distant MP to go off to Ottawa and make policy, so it's a very strange disconnect that voters have with municipal politics. The issues on the national scene are seen as more important -- Are we going to war? Will we have health care? But the issues the city is wrestling with are pretty important to our day-to-day lives and are going to be factors 10, 20 and 30 years down the road," Roach said.

Keith Brownsey, a political science instructor at Mount Royal College, says municipal voters really do get the government they deserve.

"We fail to engage in civic political life at our own peril," Brownsey says. "Some very radical people can get into office at the civic level with few votes. A hundred votes one way or the other and you can be an alderman in this town."

Or even a pyjama-wearing mayor.

rremington@theherald.canwest.com

[Boris2k7]

King nearly misses cut-off for election
Colette Derworiz, with files from Kim Guttormson, Calgary Herald, Calgary Herald
Published: Tuesday, September 18, 2007

The race in Ward 8 heated up on the first day of the official campaign Monday when the incumbent nearly missed the deadline for filing her nomination papers -- and two of her competitors immediately criticized the mistake.

Madeleine King, a two-term alderman heading into this fall's election, arrived at City Hall around 10 a.m. to find out dozens of the 100 signatures she required to run were invalid.

She quickly went back out into the community to gather 40 new signatures and returned six minutes before the noon deadline.

"You're in the door, so you're OK," Barb Clifford, the city's returning officer, said to a visibly frazzled King as she ran in the door.

As she arrived, another candidate was being rejected for another problem on her nomination papers, leading to a loud exchange in council chambers.

Out of breath, King waited for her turn and then watched as Clifford counted the names.

"We've got enough; you've got enough," Clifford said, as King let out a sigh of relief.

She then joked that she could use a "stiff drink," adding traffic seemed even worse than usual.

But her misstep led to criticism from two of the three people in the running for her seat.

"It shows a lack of organization -- if nothing else. Things like that should be dealt with ahead of time," said Steve Chapman, who was only 146 votes behind King in the 2004 election.

John Mar, another candidate, agreed that it's indicative of King's organization.

"You would think she would have her ducks in a row," he said, suggesting her papers could still be rejected today if all of the signatures don't check out.

The third candidate, however, said she's relieved King made it.

"The more choice Ward 8 voters have, the more we can improve voter turnout," said Lindsay Luhnau, who noted she doesn't want to run a negative campaign.

King said she was embarrassed by the incident.

"My track record shows I am a hard worker . . . very competent," she said. "Sometimes one just has to apologize. We all make mistakes. I'm sorry I did it."

Clifford said there were three people who had insufficient signatures because the signed pages didn't have the proper information at the top.

"There was no proof they knew what they were signing for," she said, noting Ward 7 candidate Barry Eldridge made the same mistake as King and had to run out to get 11 signatures.

While both Eldridge and King made it, one woman was unable to run in Ward 1 despite arriving 10 minutes before the deadline.

Carol Neuman, who had been planning to run in Ward 1, had her papers rejected because she had copied the original form onto two separate pieces of paper.

"I had more than enough (signatures)," she said outside council chambers. "I asked about photocopying the forms and they said it wouldn't be a problem."

Neuman, who had a campaign website set up, said it was frustrating.

"Especially because there is no appeal process," she said. "There's nothing documented on the city website or what's given out to potential candidates."

Clifford said the forms may need to be reviewed.

"We haven't had this occur in the past," she said. "We have used this form since 1995. . . . Obviously, this time, there was an issue with one candidate."

cderworiz@theherald.canwest.com

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Ald. Madeleine King watches as the signatures on her nomination form are scrutinized on Monday at City Hall.
Leah Hennel, Calgary Herald

[Boris2k7]

Two aldermen to hit streets despite acclamations
Kim Guttormson, Calgary Herald
Published: Tuesday, September 18, 2007

Diane Colley-Urquhart and Linda Fox-Mellway will spend the next four weeks knocking on doors, but the two aldermen don't have to worry about campaigning.

They were elected Monday by acclamation.

"We'll still run a campaign out there," said Colley-Urquhart, the alderman for Ward 13, who was also acclaimed in the 2001 election. "Nothing really changes. I'll still be out campaigning and having the public forums, doing those sorts of things to engage people."

Surprised at the lack of competition, Colley-Urquhart said she thought if any issue pulled out a challenger, it would have been the "Support Our Troops" decals, which she argued against putting on city vehicles. "But it didn't, so that's that."

She said she'll have to decide whether to still send out a brochure or just post it online.

Fox-Mellway, the alderman for Ward 14, said she's sent out information and had a second brochure planned.

With no one running against her, Fox-Mellway said she'll now be able to dedicate more time to ward priorities rather than campaigning aggressively.

"I certainly hope it indicates some level of confidence," she said of having no challengers.

The two aldermen join two trustees with the Calgary Board of Education and four with the Calgary Catholic board in being acclaimed.

In 2004, four aldermen were acclaimed.

Colley-Urquhart said it's important to be talking to her constituents, especially given the $3.3 billion in infrastructure the city will receive from the province over the next decade.

She said the main priority for Ward 13 in the next term is seeing a deal between the province and Tsuu T'ina Nation for the southwest leg of the ring road.

"Development can't proceed out there until we get the ring road built," she said.

Transportation, recreation and emergency services will be the focus of Fox-Mellway's next three years.

kguttormson@theherald.canwest.com

[Boris2k7]

Challenger takes on Bronconnier dollar for dollar in this campaign
Don Braid, Calgary Herald
Published: Tuesday, September 18, 2007

There's never been anything like this in a Calgary mayoral campaign -- a challenger from out of the blue with $1 million in cold cash to spend.

Alnoor Kassam says he can't confirm the figure, for competitive reasons, but $1 million "isn't far off."

So he pretty much confirms it, after all. The figure could even turn out to be low, if Mayor Dave Bronconnier cranks up his own spending to the $1-million range, which he's quite capable of doing. The Go Alnoor crowd will then match him dollar for dollar.

The bad blood is already boiling between the two camps. After some testy early exchanges, Bronconnier's men and Kassam's crowd don't talk to each other these days.

But they talk about each other readily enough. Bronco's camp says polls already show Alnoor isn't just second, he's running fourth, with Bronconnier far in front of everyone.

That may be true, but the difference between Kassam and the seven other mayoral challengers -- the Harry Hecks and Jeremy Zhaos -- is all that money.

Kassam has already bought ads in more than 100 LRT stations. With much more in the kitty, Kassam can make himself very well known to Calgarians in the next 30 days.

By contrast, the amiable Jeremy Zhao, a U of C engineering student, says he has "zero" cash to spend. He blew his entire political wad, $500, on the entry fee.

Kassam says he came to Calgary in 2004 with a goal of making $5 million in five years. Instead, he says, he made $16 million in two years, mostly on a hotel deal.

More recently, he found himself on the wrong end of media reports when he radically raised the rents in a Mount Royal lowrise -- for one tenant, from $650 to $2,500 a month.

He now says they all found other accommodations before they had to pay the increase.

There's a much longer history to Kassam, who fled Kenya in 1993 with the law at his heels for his involvement in the country's greatest banking scandal.

He was a principal of Trade Bank, as well as Diner's Club. A huge inquiry over government subsidy of exports focused on the fate of the bank.

Kenyan officials have said he's welcome to return, as long as he coughs up $23 million Cdn he's alleged to have taken with him.

Kassam insists he didn't take a penny, noting that a Canadian immigration tribunal ruled in his favour.

He has freely told me, though, that he used to leave briefcases full of cash behind when he visited government ministers, and engaged in illegal currency trading.

Kassam is disarming when he's asked about all this. "Oh yes, I did that," he said last last October, referring to the bribery. "We all did. We had to. That was the political culture, entirely without ethics or honesty.

"It's not excusable, some of the things I did, but now I can sit back and reflect on what I did wrong and try to make it right."

It's far from certain that even $1 million will sell this story in Calgary. That seems so obvious, in fact, that I thought Kassam would drop out long before now.

But a full year later he's still campaigning and spending, utterly convinced he will make a most wonderful mayor.

With Bronconnier already deeply annoyed, this is going to be one strange election battle. Expensive, too.

dbraid@shaw.ca

[Boris2k7]

Races shaping up in school board election
Funding, quality of education among top issues
Sarah McGinnis, Calgary Herald
Published: Tuesday, September 18, 2007

Diversity best describes the looming public trustee election campaign, as former politicians, retired teachers, businessmen and twentysomething candidates seek a seat as a Calgary Board of Education trustee.

Board chairwoman Pat Cochrane and former chairman Gordon Dirks were both acclaimed Monday. But strong races are shaping up elsewhere, as more than a dozen candidates vie for five remaining spots.

The hottest race appears to be in Wards 11 and 13, where four candidates hope to replace Nancy Close.

Former Conservative Calgary West MLA Karen Kryczka wants to launch a second career as a CBE trustee and said her political connections should help the board work with the government to address funding issues.

"I am very interested in seeing progress at all levels, whether it's new schools, renovations to old ones, upgrades to schools, P3s," Kryczka said.

Entrepreneur and stay-at-home mom Kathy Power, running in the same district, said the board has to be held accountable for the quality of education it provides.

"I see too many parents taking their kids out of public school and putting them in another system because they're not happy," Power said.

Deborah Duncan is a school council facilitator and mother of two who said lobbying for education funding is crucial for the board to survive.

"I want to ensure education is made a priority in Alberta and the province puts in place a long-term plan . . . which will allow the school board to get back to (teaching) Calgary students," Duncan said.

Rounding out the race is Neil Mackie, a father of two who fears a disconnect between the board and parents.

"I don't think the families have enough of a voice," said Mackie, who works for a technology firm in Calgary.

Michael Peter Stefanyshyn appears to be the most youthful candidate in the fall election. The 27-year-old was a high school science teacher, but said he left the profession after seeing too much politics in schools.

"There's not enough money getting into the classroom . . . but there is also too much overhead and too much administration staff," said Stefanyshyn, who is running in Wards 5 and 10.

Pamela King has also worked for the CBE and said more focus must be paid to addressing labour issues.

"We have great people and we need to figure out a way to keep them," said the mother of two, who is also running in Wards 5 and 10 for the seat left vacant when trustee Kyle Fawcett announced his intention to run for MLA.

George Lane was acclaimed as the Wards 6 and 7 trustee three years ago, but he's got a political fight ahead, facing two challengers. A strong election is a great opportunity to discuss meaningful educational issues, Lane said.

"I'm a strong believer in early childhood education. I think it needs to be much more available to all families who want it (including) full-time kindergarten and junior kindergarten. Completion of high school should be the norm," Lane said.

Drake Hammill is a former CBE employee who said he's been lobbying for a solution to Calgary's crumbling schools for more than a decade.

"I think it's about time our children are supplied with a healthy, clean and secure school environment," said Hammill, who is running to replace Lane.

Calgary lawyer and former general counsel for the CBE Greg Scott is also campaigning in Wards 6 and 7. Like most others, he is eager to find a solution to ongoing funding problems.

"I think (my past experience with the CBE) gives me something to offer that would be unique. I have a strong legal knowledge of the school act and of education issues," said Scott.

The fight to get new schools built has brought trustee Lynn Ferguson back in the campaign for Wards 3 and 4.

"What it's about is trying to find out how we are going to build schools in our community into the future."

Also campaigning in Wards 3 and 4 is Jadine Kohut. The mother of three has spoken out against the way the CBE has ranked schools on its capital plan in the past and is now running for clearer guidelines on the issue.

"There needs to be a formula for high schools so we can fund them across Calgary fairly," said Kohut.

Finding ways to give students the tools they need to succeed in a global world is why Carol Bazinet chose to run again. She will be campaigning against newcomer Greg Humphreys for her Ward 12 and 14 seat on the school board, but Bazinet welcomes the debate and interest from new candidates.

Humphreys is running to have "less talk, more direction" at the CBE.

The father of two said he's disappointed in the school board's progress on major financial issues.

smcginnis@theherald.canwest.com


Calgary Board of Education candidates

- Wards 1 and 2

Gordon Dirks * acclaimed

- Wards 3 and 4

Lynn Ferguson
Jadine Kohut

- Wards 5 and 10

Pamela King
Michael Stefanyshyn

- Wards 6 and 7

George Lane
Drake Hammill
Greg Scott

- Wards 8 and 9

Pat Cochrane * acclaimed

- Wards 11 and 13

Deborah Duncan
Kathy Power
Neil Mackie
Karen Kryczka

- Wards 12 and 14

Carol Bazinet
Greg Humphreys

[Boris2k7]

Most Catholic board seats filled by acclamation
Ousted trustee O'Malley files nomination papers
Sarah McGinnis, with files from Colette Derworiz, Calgary Herald
Published: Tuesday, September 18, 2007

The trustee election campaign has barely begun and already more than half of the Calgary Catholic School District seats have been settled by acclamation.

There will races for only three of the separate board's seven seats, including the return of ousted trustee Michael O'Malley as a controversial candidate trying to reclaim the seat he was forced to vacate.

Current trustees Serafino Scarpino, Linda Wellman and Marg Belcourt have all been returned to office after no one came forward to run against them in next month's civic election.

Newcomer Mary Martin has also been confirmed as a member of the separate board representing students in Wards 13 and 14. The mother of four is a registered nurse who has long volunteered at both the school and district level.

Most recently, Martin was a member of the round table exploring the gambling-based fundraising issue and has worked to find alternative ways to raise money for local schools.

Her primary objective in joining the school board is to help in the fight for long-term funding.

"Inadequate provincial funding . . . spills over into transportation, it jeopardizes the ability to build schools and deliver programs. As a parent I've seen this for years and it's becoming more worrisome."

O'Malley created the biggest stir of the morning when he was confirmed as a separate board candidate in Wards 9, 10 and Chestermere on Monday.

In the lead up to nomination day, there was much debate over whether O'Malley would be eligible to run.

A verdict is pending on a second trial over whether O'Malley was unfairly punted from the separate board.

The district argues that until the decision is announced, a previous ban on O'Malley running for re-election should stand.

But O'Malley said that since he was granted a retrial there is no legal ruling preventing him from campaigning.

"I won my appeal. All the authorities have given me the freedom (to run). The courts haven't stopped me, the law hasn't stopped me, the trial judge hasn't stopped me, the returning officer hasn't stopped me," O'Malley said.

"I'm going to let the voters make the final decisions on this conflict with the board."

Barb Clifford, the city's returning officer, said they have accepted the nomination papers from O'Malley because his previous judgment -- which barred him from running again until 2010 -- has been set aside.

"I had to accept his papers," she told reporters at City Hall. "He is a candidate at this moment."

Clifford said while she can't comment on the legal technicalities, she noted O'Malley could withdraw his candidacy by noon today or he could file a disclaimer that he will not accept office if he's elected. However, she added, that is up to the candidate.

"He is on the ballot -- unless he withdraws within 24 hours."

O'Malley won't be the only name on the ballot in his riding. Two other candidates have stepped up to prevent his re-election.

Rosemarie Goerlitz unsuccessfully challenged trustee Linda Wellman in the last election. She said the waste of public dollars in the separate board's ongoing legal battle with O'Malley is why she decided to fight for the seat.

"It breaks my heart to see they can spend so many hours and so many dollars on issues that don't affect the children. Everything should have been spent on the programs instead of fighting political issues," she said.

Former trustee Adam Heighes has also come out strong in campaigning to replace O'Malley, to whom he lost three years ago.

This father of five said it's unacceptable how O'Malley hijacked the school board in pursuit of his democratic goals while ignoring the needs of students. He confronted O'Malley about how much he cost the board in legal costs on Monday.

Two-time trustee and board chairwoman Cathie Williams discovered she will have to run a campaign to reclaim her seat after oilman Michael Annuik announced his candidacy for Wards 11 and 12.

And veteran trustee Lois Burke-Gaffney will contest for re-election to Wards 6 and 8 against Calgary architect Antoni Grochowski.

smcginnis@theherald.canwest.com


Calgary Catholic School District candidates

- Wards 1, 2 and Cochrane

Serafino Scarpino * acclaimed

- Wards 3, 5 and Airdrie

Linda Wellman * acclaimed

- Wards 4 and 7

Margaret Belcourt * acclaimed

- Wards 6 and 8

Lois Burke-Gaffney
Antoni Grochowski

- Wards 9, 10 and Chestermere

Michael O'Malley
Adam Heighes
Rosemarie Goerlitz

- Wards 11 and 12

Cathie Williams
Michael Annuik

- Wards 13 and 14

Mary Martin * acclaimed

http://img61.imageshack.us/img61/4346/7390824759eo5.jpg
Former Catholic trustee Michael O'Malley filed papers to run again in the seat from which he was ousted by fellow board members.
Leah Hennel, Calgary Herald

[Bigtime]

[SIZE="3"]
Serafino Scarpino, Linda Wellman and Marg Belcourt will all be returning to the board this fall. Newcomer Mary Martin, a registered nurse with four children, has also won her bid to replace Maureen Emond in wards 13 and 14.


Mr. Scarps was a kick-ass Italian teacher in high school(bonus points if you can guess which school!) and did an awesome job as our lead chaperone on our trip to Italy in grade 12.

With all the disputes with O'Malley I've always envisioned Serafino just getting up from his chair and putting some serious good old Italian beat down on him! :D :tup:

[Zilla]

^ St. Francis!

I took English from him at St. Margaret's and then he moved to St. Francis the same year I did. Great guy, I agree.

I also did the Italy trip (different chaperones though)

[Boris2k7]

You guys got to go to Italy!? The only place we were sent was Kananaskis...:irked:

F*cking Bishop O' Byrne...

EDIT: BTW, that should be all the election spamming for the day. That is, unless the candidates find new and innovative ways to whore themselves to the media.

[Boris2k7]

Mayor's closest rival not even in the race
Hillhurst man picked second in opinion poll
Kim Guttormson, Calgary Herald
Published: Wednesday, September 19, 2007

Barry Eldridge is Calgarians' second choice for mayor, according to a poll released Tuesday.

The problem is the West Hillhurst resident isn't running for the city's top job on Oct. 15 -- he's a candidate in Ward 7.

"I'm honoured," the 49-year-old said with a laugh. "It's the mail-in vote, I guess."

In the Ipsos Reid poll conducted last week, incumbent Dave Bronconnier -- whose campaign commissioned the survey -- got the votes of almost half of those questioned.

Forty-four per cent didn't know who they would vote for or said they wouldn't vote.

Eldridge, whose name was offered as a choice along with eight others because he'd taken out nomination papers to run for mayor, placed second.

Of the 400 people surveyed, 187 named Bronconnier, while nine chose Eldridge, eight selected mayoral candidate Sandy Jenkins and six opted for Alnoor Kassam.

Kassam, who officially launched his campaign in May and has spent heavily on advertising, was the runner-up in terms of name recognition -- 10 per cent compared with Bronconnier's 42 per cent.

"It tells them they have to continue what they're doing, getting his name out there," Mount Royal College political scientist Keith Brownsey said of the Kassam team.

"On the other hand, he should be doing slightly better because he's been campaigning for months."

Kassam's campaign manager, Stephen Carter, said given that the poll was conducted the week before the election campaign officially started, he's not surprised by the numbers.

"We've got 25 per cent of Dave Bronconnier's name awareness. That's exactly what we wanted," he said. "The stuff we've been going out with, we've got Go Alnoor stop signs, it's not exactly giving them in-depth reasons to vote for us.

"That's what happens in the four weeks before the election."

Jenkins said it seems early to be releasing a poll.

"The reason (Bronconnier) released this is they look so good in it," Jenkins said. "Alnoor (Kassam) has his own polls and if he looked better, he'd be releasing them, I'm sure."

But Jenkins pointed out the high number of undecided voters and said a lot can happen during the campaign.

"It's early, obviously (Bronconnier) has an overwhelming lead," he said. "I'm looking forward to getting out there."

Bronconnier said the poll reinforced for his team what the main issues for Calgarians are -- transportation, infrastructure, housing, and crime and safety.

"Our platform is consistent with what people what," Bronconnier said. "There's no surprises here."

He was also pleased with the results around whether citizens are satisfied with his performance and that of city council.

According to the poll, 76 per cent either strongly or somewhat approved of how Bronconnier has done his job, while 70 per cent felt the same of council.

Seventy-one per cent of people said the city is on the right track.

"The last six years, we've made an investment in infrastructure, and it's paying off and people are recognizing that and prepared to give council credit for it," Bronconnier said.

Carter said the approval rating isn't surprising.

"It's because people don't have the full story of why they should be dissatisfied," he said.

But Brownsey said Bronconnier should be happy with the number.

"It's a very big number. It demonstrates there's not a lot of discontent out there," he said.

Ipsos Reid surveyed 400 people between Sept. 11 and 13. The poll is considered accurate within plus or minus 4.9 points, 19 times out of 20.

kguttormson@theherald.canwest.com

[Boris2k7]

Ward 6 candidate pulling out
Colette Derworiz, Calgary Herald
Published: Wednesday, September 19, 2007

A candidate in Ward 6 says she's dropping out to avoid splitting the vote against a controversial incumbent, Craig Burrows.

Rosemary Berglund, 55, is one of five candidates who will appear on the ballot in Ward 6 for the Oct. 15 vote, after she missed Tuesday noon deadline by five minutes to withdraw her name as a candidate.

But even though she missed the deadline, Berglund told the Herald she'll still take herself out of the running.

"I'm planning on yielding, yes," she said late Tuesday, explaining she wanted to unseat Burrows. "I ran hoping and moving forward to being the best alderman the ward has seen. It's just not going to work; it's just splitting too many votes.

"My community is first. I have to yield."

Berglund, president of the Coach Hill-Patterson Heights Community Association, was one of the residents who fought to save the historic Hart House and believed their interests weren't being served by their alderman.

Burrows, who courted controversy over spending $12,000 this spring on an education course and making inappropriate comments about the smoking bylaw, said he has a solid track record with his communities.

"They know I work hard," he said, suggesting his "tough stance on tough issues" can rile people.

In the past few weeks, the other four candidates have been discussing whether they should join forces to try to unseat the incumbent.

"She's been bringing this up for weeks," said James Istvanffy, who placed second to Burrows in the 2001 election. "I'm going to run a full campaign."

James Kohut, who ran in the 2004 campaign, said he talked to Istvanffy about withdrawing because they have similar platforms, but Kohut, too, has decided to stay in the race.

The fifth candidate, Joe Connelly, said he will also run a full campaign over the next four weeks.

"We are still moving ahead," he said, noting he's not concerned about vote splitting because he's got a "solid" platform. "I made a commitment to my people that I will move ahead.

"That will not change."

All of the other 76 candidates kept their names in the races for Calgary's mayor, alderman and school board trustees.

cderworiz@theherald.canwest.com

http://img513.imageshack.us/img513/96/8162827202zu4.jpg
Rosemary Berglund missed the deadline to withdraw.
Leah Hennel, Calgary Herald

[Boris2k7]

School board candidates urged to pursue funding
Sarah McGinnis, Calgary Herald
Published: Wednesday, September 19, 2007

School board employee unions and parent groups are looking for Calgary's trustee candidates to weigh in on ways to secure more education funding, using private-public partnerships to build schools, and gambling-related fundraisers.

There are 20 individuals campaigning for eight available trustee positions on the boards of the Calgary Board of Education and Calgary Catholic School District.

"I think it's fantastic. This is democracy at its best," said Calgary Public Teachers Association president Jenny Regal.

The Calgary Association of Parent and School Councils and the Alberta Teachers' Association presented the candidates with survey questions and information on pending forums moments after they filed nomination papers on Monday.

Securing more long-term education funding from the province to repair crumbling schools and pay for new ones will be one of the biggest issues, said Regal.

Teachers will also be looking for candidates prepared to lobby the province to boost its three per cent operating grant increase -- which must cover all cost escalation and salaries for the school boards, said Calgary Catholic Teachers Association president David Cracknell.

Candidates also need to understand the complexity of the job they're running for, said Bob Anderson, president of the CBE's maintenance and custodial workers.

The public school board "is a $1-billion-a-year corporation and trustees have to have both business experience and education experience," he said.

School support workers want to see where candidates stand on the province's plan to build nine P3 schools in Calgary and how these public-private partnerships would work, said Anderson.

Catholic parents are talking about the trustee election in Wards 9, 10 and Chestermere, where Michael O'Malley is fighting to return to the separate school board after being removed midway through his first term. Former trustee Adam Heighes and retired special education teacher Rosemarie Goerlitz are also running.

School fundraising will be another major concern for Catholic parents, said parent Karen Melon, who is school council chair for Father Lacombe High School.

"If the Catholic board will not allow us to fundraise through casinos, then the government should take a portion of its gaming revenues and put it toward education funding for public and separate boards," said Melon.

smcginnis@theherald.canwest.com

Online Extras

Log onto our website for expanded civic election coverage CalgaryHerald.com

[Boris2k7]

A link to the Herald section on the election (ha!)

http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/features/election/index.html

There is a map in there with the candidates on it, which I will post in a few minutes (have to change locations...)

EDIT: NM, the map isn't all that great. It's a Google Map, which is fine for checking and interacting with, but not so good for posting and referencing here. A link will do:

http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/features/election/images/electionmap.html

[Beltliner]

This was a surprise (http://calgary.ctv.ca/servlet/RTGAMArticleHTMLTemplate/B,C/20070919/o'malley?brand=generic&hub=&tf=CFCNPlus/generic/hubs/frontpage.html&cf=CFCNPlus/generic/hubs/frontpage.cfg&slug=o'malley&date=20070919&archive=CFCNPlus&ad_page_name=&nav=home&subnav=fullstory&site_cfcn=http://calgary.ctv.ca) on one level, anyway:

School board pleased with judge's decision

calgary.ctv.ca

rre

POSTED AT 3:45 PM Wednesday, September 19

A judge has ruled the catholic school trustee, Michael O’Malley, cannot run in the civic election.

The ruling came hours after O’Malley’s name officially went on the ballot.

O’Malley was told he could not run in the 2007 civic election because he sued the school board three times.

The judge also ruled that O’Malley is disqualified from running in the 2010 civic election.

The school district tells CTV News it is pleased with the decision.

Don't suppose anyone on the board has seen the first act of Die Fledermaus to put this story in perspective.... ;)

[Bassic Lab]

In an issue related to the vote, does any one else think that it is time to think about making changes to the city's electoral system?

For on thing it might be time to add a few more wards. In my opinion they are becoming too large, in both population and area, for the representatives to really deal with community issues. Ward 12 really stands out here. The issues in communities like Haysboro and Acadia is vastly different from those in New Brighton and Auburn Bay. One Councillor simply can't represent both areas fairly, especially since the demands would likely clash at times (keeping schools open in established areas versus opening new ones on the outskirts, limited money can't do both). Ward 9 also covers some pretty disparate areas of the city.

It is also alot harder to really see where candidates stand on certain issues than it is federally or provincially. This is a factor of the non-partisan nature of the body and I'm not sure if I'd want to change it but I definately see it as a factor in the low participation rates. It likely works alot better when wards are composed of a few thousand people and the voters know the candidates more personally than it does with wards twenty times larger.

I don't know, does any one else have any thoughts on this?

[Innersoul1]

Mr. Scarps was a kick-ass Italian teacher in high school(bonus points if you can guess which school!) and did an awesome job as our lead chaperone on our trip to Italy in grade 12.

With all the disputes with O'Malley I've always envisioned Serafino just getting up from his chair and putting some serious good old Italian beat down on him! :D :tup:


Damn rights! I had the pleasure of going to Italy with Bigtime on the sair Italy trip. Scarps was money in the bank! The classic story was his connections with some goldsmiths in Firenze....hahaha I took us to this shop where we could "get a good deal"

He was also my soccer coach at Francis.

Hey Biggie Time....is Marg Belcourt the same Belcourt from Francis?

[Innersoul1]

Jeremy Zhao Mayor! :notacrook:

http://www.jeremyzhao.com/jz.jpg

He is concerned about voter apathy....and I frankly feel apathetic :haha:

[Wooster]

That guy looks like emotion eric.

www.emotioneric.com

[compman3]

I am not too familiar with the other candidates in Ward 8, anyone have a link to them? I would almost do anything to get rid of Madelyn King. She is not capable of being an alderman in a city of a million people. Her ideas are more suited for a small rural town, say Okotoks, not Calgary.

I want someone who realizes Calgary is a metro city, not some small town. Hence make decisions based on a how to make Calgary a vibrant city, not a city with a small town mentality or feel.

[You Need A Thneed]

For on thing it might be time to add a few more wards. In my opinion they are becoming too large, in both population and area, for the representatives to really deal with community issues. Ward 12 really stands out here. The issues in communities like Haysboro and Acadia is vastly different from those in New Brighton and Auburn Bay. One Councillor simply can't represent both areas fairly, especially since the demands would likely clash at times (keeping schools open in established areas versus opening new ones on the outskirts, limited money can't do both). Ward 9 also covers some pretty disparate areas of the city.

I think Ward 3 is in the running here too. Evanston is a 20 minute drive at least from Falconridge and Taradale. Not to mention the still rural acreages NW of Evanston.

[Boris2k7]

Judge blocks return of O'Malley
'Extremist' ex-trustee disqualified
Sarah McGinnis, Calgary Herald
Published: Thursday, September 20, 2007

Renegade former trustee Michael O'Malley has been barred by a court from running for Calgary's separate school board, but the decision comes too late to remove his name from city election ballots.

In a much-anticipated ruling, Court of Queen's Justice Peter Clark said O'Malley is disqualified from holding office as a trustee of the Calgary Catholic School District for the 2007 and 2010 civic elections.

In a written decision, the judge said the case "is about an extremist who exploited and abused his elected position -- a person who has deliberately and in a calculated way attempted to sabotage and undermine the very organization he was elected to serve.

"Mr. O'Malley needs to be held accountable for his actions so that the integrity and discharge of public duties can be maintained."

O'Malley did not respond Wednesday to calls and e-mail requests for comment.

The courts shouldn't be involved in choosing whether he should sit on the school board, O'Malley said after filing his nomination papers Monday. "Let's let the people decide."

The Calgary Catholic School District spent at least $750,000 addressing O'Malley's frequent legal challenges -- both before and after he was removed from office.

"We're pleased with the decision," said separate board spokeswoman Tania Younker.

"It's a clear decision. We hope Mr. O'Malley will respect the judicial process and withdraw his name."

In May 2006, the separate board sought legal permission to disqualify O'Malley as a trustee for conflict of interest and breaching his fiduciary duty after he had taken the board to court repeatedly.

O'Malley appealed the initial court decision barring him from running until after the 2010 election. While he awaited the verdict of his second trial, O'Malley filed nomination papers intending to run for school trustee again.

Now that Clark has ruled O'Malley can't sit as a trustee, city election officials must cope with this illegal candidate whose name is printed on some election ballots.

"It's very unfortunate this didn't come down yesterday morning," said returning officer Barb Clifford. "The ballots have already been proofed and gone to print."

City lawyers will examine the written decision and research how to handle the situation. There are no provisions in the Local Authorities Election Act to address this, said Clifford.

The legislation allows for disclaimers to be posted in polling stations describing a candidate's wish to no longer run, but it is up to the individual to file for the disclaimer, said Clifford.

The separate board voted unanimously Wednesday night to take legal action to force O'Malley to withdraw his name if he refuses to do so voluntarily.

Meanwhile, Calgary Catholic voters will still have two remaining candidates to choose from in wards 9, 10 and Chestermere.

Rosemarie Goerlitz said she decided to run to prevent

O'Malley from returning to further disrupt the board.

Former trustee Adam Heighes is also fighting to secure the seat he lost to O'Malley three years ago and was elated the court has barred O'Malley from re-election.

"Mr. O'Malley failed to understand the true purpose of democracy and Catholic education and appreciate that the purpose of trusteeship is to work co-operatively with their colleagues to serve the best interests of students," said Heighes.

smcginnis@theherald.canwest.com

[Boris2k7]

Mayor promises $930M LRT plan
West leg route upsets some of his rivals
Colette Derworiz, Calgary Herald
Published: Friday, September 21, 2007

Dave Bronconnier, campaigning for re-election as mayor in October's civic election, vowed Thursday to spend $930 million to extend the LRT in three directions: northeast, northwest and west.

His first major campaign promise comes six days after the province signed an $11.3-billion, 10-year deal for Alberta's municipalities -- including a total of $3.3 billion for Calgary.

"If elected on Oct. 15, I will recommend to city council at our first meeting to move forward on a major LRT reinvestment -- almost a billion dollars for Calgary's light-rail transit system," he told reporters at Westside Recreation Centre.

The west leg of the LRT, which is the biggest cost, at about $700 million, is proposed to run along Bow Trail, go south at Westbrook Mall and then head west along 17th Avenue until it reaches a station near the recreation centre at 69th Street S.W.

But several of Bronconnier's challengers for the mayor's chair immediately criticized the proposal.

"The LRT should be extended, but you have to fix up the downtown part before extending it out," said Sandy Jenkins.

"My plan is to put it underground downtown."

As for the west leg, Jenkins said it should run past Mount Royal College.

David Bertram, who is also running for mayor, agreed the west LRT needs a different alignment.

"I want to know why we aren't going to go through (Mount Royal College) like we did with SAIT and the university," said Bertram, noting he doesn't know yet whether it's a priority to extend the west leg of the LRT. "It's one piece of the puzzle . . . but I am going to have to take a look at how best to spend the $3.3 billion."

Another candidate, however, said he believes the entire amount coming from the province should be spent on the LRT system.

"It's not enough," said Alnoor Kassam, pledging to finish the west leg of the LRT in three years and build the southeast line, which would reach a total price tag of nearly $3 billion.

Kassam said he wouldn't extend the northeast and northwest lines further unless there's more money available.

Under Bronconnier's proposal, the northwest extension -- complete to Crowfoot Station by mid-2008 -- would continue to Rocky Ridge. It would include 2.2 kilometres of track, one new station and seven additional LRT cars at a cost of $120 million. The northeast line would keep going from Westwinds station to Martindale and Saddleridge, at a cost of $110 million for 2.9 kilometres of track, two new stations and another seven LRT cars.

The west leg, which would run from downtown to 69th Street S.W., would include 7.7 kilometres of track, six stations and 21 additional LRT cars in the next four to five years.

"That is subject to the availability of acquiring land," Bronconnier said, noting the detailed design work and acquisitions would take about 14 to 18 months. "When you look at it overall, it's a very aggressive timeline."

Bronconnier's plan calls for another $6 million to be spent to complete the detailed designs on a subway below 8th Avenue and the connection to a future southeast line.

City council will ultimately set the priorities for the $3.3 billion.

Ald. Linda Fox-Mellway, who has been acclaimed in Ward 14, said council has been hoping to extend the LRT lines for a long time.

"There is a higher priority now for transit," she said. "I think we have to start building because these things aren't getting any cheaper.

"We can't build enough to create enough capacity on our roads."

cderworiz@theherald.canwest.com

http://img223.imageshack.us/img223/6034/mayorcs5.jpg
Campaigning for re-election, Mayor Dave Bronconnier vows to spends $930 million to extend the LRT.
Calgary Herald Archive

[Boris2k7]

Lawsuit needed to strike O'Malley's name from ballots
Order required to avoid byelection, says expert
Sarah McGinnis, Calgary Herald
Published: Friday, September 21, 2007

The Calgary Catholic School District should launch a lawsuit asking the court to strike Michael O'Malley's name from printed election ballots if they want to avoid a byelection, says a Calgary legal professor.

A court order to alter ballots could be the only way to prevent the public from voting for a man who legally can't assume public office, said Chris Levy, associate dean of the University of Calgary's law department.

"There is a problem here and there is no legislative mechanism for dealing with this problem (outside the courts)," said Levy.

On Tuesday, Court of Queen's Bench Justice Peter Clark announced that O'Malley was disqualified from becoming a school board trustee for the next two civic elections.

The decision came hours after nominations closed for the Oct. 15 elections, confirming O'Malley as a separate board trustee candidate in wards 9, 10 and Chestermere.

Under existing legislation, they are bound to follow rigid deadlines for when they can and cannot reject nominees, when ballots must be printed and election pamphlets must be delivered to the public.

Changing the candidates list after expired deadlines could also be seen as tampering in the election.

The question now is how to handle this trustee candidate who can't actually sit on the school board.

O'Malley could not be reached for comment and has not publicly spoken since the judge's decision was released.

City lawyers are currently reviewing the decision and what powers they have to address it.

Calgary Catholic trustees voted unanimously on Wednesday to have lawyers head back to court if O'Malley ignores the ruling.

School board lawyers have already sent a letter to O'Malley warning they will launch a lawsuit if he doesn't voluntarily withdraw from the election, said board spokeswoman Tania Younker.

Even if O'Malley asks to be removed from the race, there is nothing in the Local Authorities Election Act to permit his name from being crossed off ballots, said Levy.

"Part of the problem is the timing of Justice Clark's decision. If the decision had come down before the ballots were printed them, Mr. O'Malley's name could simply have been excluded from the ballot papers," said Levy.

"We are now stuck with a situation that unless he chooses voluntarily to post notices and make it plain he's not a candidate, his name is going to be on the ballot and people may be misled into voting for him."

The school board's biggest concern is that keeping O'Malley on election ballots will make the results in the race -- which includes two other candidates -- invalid, said Younker.

"We don't want to incur the cost of a byelection," said Younker.

"When he was removed from office it was determined a byelection would cost between $125,000 and $150,000."

A byelection would be "unfair to voters, it's unfair to the other candidates and it's unfair to the district," said Adam Heighes, who is also running in the ward 9, 10 and Chestermere riding.

The returning officer may need a court order to allow election staff to scratch O'Malley's name from voter ballots, said Levy.

He suggests the separate school board immediately return to Justice Clark, who made the original ruling, and ask him to order election officials to remove O'Malley's name from voter ballots.

If Clark agrees to step in to ensure his ruling is followed, such an order could be made within the week, Levy said.

smcginnis@theherald.canwest.com

[Surferguy]

Is there going to be a Mayoral debate at some time? open to the public I'd hope?

[Rise_of_the_West]

I had an idea:

Any Mayor Candidate that "promises" improved transit should pledge to take the bus/train during peak hours for the rest of the campaign (and mabey when they get in office). This way they will experence first hand the frustration of those who take transit and see that there really is alot to be improved.

I personally am supporting Alnoor at the moment, since his plan is the most innovative and hopefully will move the city in the right direction. Innovative ideas like lane reversals, HOV lanes(I still cannot understand why Bow trail has no HOV lane yet), and commuter rail are what the city needs to reduce congestion.

[The Geographer]

Building the Southeast leg ahead of the NW and NE extensions isn't particularly innovative. Especially since people in the southeast are more likely to work in the Deerfoot employment area. AFAIK, people in the west and north would make better use of a radial system. Another advantage is that the rebuilding of Crowchild and the construction of the Stony/Crowchild interchange is happening anyway, and both of these facilitate cheaper LRT extension.

Now I understand that you can 'build' demand in the southeast by building the LRT there earlier, but if it has to be at the expense of the other lines, I would say no... for now.

[ScottFromCalgary]

More from mayoral candidate Jeremy Zhao:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJau-8JBvwA

[Arch26]

More from mayoral candidate Jeremy Zhao:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJau-8JBvwA

Screw Zhao, I'm voting for the deep-voiced guy in the background.

[Boris2k7]

Residents turn on alderman
Larocque calls criticism sour grapes
Kim Guttormson, Calgary Herald
Published: Monday, September 24, 2007

It happens so rarely, a cash-strapped organization rejecting money.

But the Martindale community association board returned $500 to the city this summer, stating it didn't want Helene Larocque, the alderman for the area, to interfere with a movie night in the park.

The event went ahead. Larocque passed out campaign literature nearby. And relations between the incumbent and a number of her constituents hit what some would consider a new low.

For her part, Larocque dismisses the criticism, saying it's simply politics.

While there has been bad blood between Larocque and pockets of the ward for her entire first term, it's starting to spill over into open hostility as the campaign heats up.

"She is the incumbent in the most trouble in the city, at the most risk of losing her seat," said Naheed Nenshi, with the Better Calgary Campaign, which advocates for better municipal government and will be making a group decision around endorsements at the beginning of October.

Nenshi, who ran fourth against Larocque in the 2004 election, said the fight for Ward 3 will likely be the most interesting race in the city.

"You have a situation where you have an incumbent, who won by a very narrow margin, who is not universally loved in the neighbourhood, but certainly does have pockets of support," Nenshi said, "competing against someone who pretty much started campaigning the day he lost last time and has a lot of endorsements, representing the traditional parts of the community, the community associations and so on.

"And then you have this third candidate who may not be as well known in those traditional parts of the community, but is exceptionally well known in the more ethnically diverse parts of the community."

Trying to unseat Larocque on Oct. 15 are businessman Jim Stevenson, who also ran in 2004, and George Chahal, a vice-president of Oxford Homes, who has a degree in planning.

Many community leaders are supporting Stevenson and -- while stressing they speak for themselves, not their associations -- are happy to document at length what they see as Larocque's failings.

Those include an abrasive manner, not returning phone calls and inflating her role in area projects, including the proposed northeast recreation centre and the extension of the LRT line to near Westwinds park.

Her decision to vote against the 2007 city budget -- which included money for fire and EMS and for planning work on the recreation centre -- has drawn criticism from constituents and some of her council colleagues.

"I'm really sick of her taking the credit for all the work the volunteers have done. She's never once said we're responsible," said Grant Galpin, who's involved with both the Saddleridge community association and the North East Centre of Community Society.

"We've done more without her than we've done with her," said Kelly Jones, who's with the Martindale community association, where Larocque was once the president.

Khalil Karbani, who lives in Taradale and is involved with the recreation centre, says organizers often feel they need to take it upon themselves to convince other aldermen to support their projects.

"We've had to go to every alderman separately and do her work," he said.

Larocque calls it sour grapes; a few unhappy people who supported other candidates when she won the hotly contested 2004 race.

"I think there are a few key people in the community who have personally allowed their opinions to cross over into their community work and I think that's very unfortunate," she said. "And they haven't attempted to try to mend the relationship.

"I've tried, but I think that they've publicly had some hostility towards me."

However, it's evident the dislike runs deep on both sides. For example, in correspondence, the president of the Martindale community association, Terry-lyn Martin, and Larocque don't refer to each other by name, just titles.

While Stevenson, who lives just outside the ward, hosted a barbecue in Martindale last weekend, Larocque knocked on doors directly across the street.

Larocque believes she has support in the larger ward and argues the community associations don't necessarily represent the wider area.

In an interview this week, the incumbent alderman wouldn't commit to public forums during the campaign, saying it depends on her schedule.

Her critics say it's another example of her attitude.

The Northern Hills Community Association said it tried to reach her team numerous times before setting a date for their Oct. 1 forum, but received no response.

Ghosts of the 2004 race hang heavy over this battle. Three years ago, Ward 3 was wide open after longtime alderman John Schmal retired.

Thirteen people vied to replace him, with Larocque edging her closest opponent by 154 ballots. Many felt the number of candidates split the vote, allowing Larocque to win.

Stevenson, finishing third, was 181 votes behind Larocque. At least two of his opponents in 2004 now support his bid to unseat the first-term alderman.

Nenshi, who is not personally endorsing any candidate, said the introduction of Chahal, the only fresh name on the ballot, adds an interesting element.

The 32-year-old father lives on the west side of Deerfoot -- the other candidates live to the east. He is a Calgary-born member of an ethnic group in the most diverse ward in the city, and is apart from the Larocque-Stevenson fray.

He won't comment on the other candidates and posts their newsletters in his campaign office. He and Stevenson have also sat down for a quick chat.

At the same time, he's not as well known as the other two candidates.

As the campaign enters its second week, the pieces are falling into place for an intriguing battle, ensuring that for the second election in a row, political watchers will be keeping a close eye on Ward 3.

kguttormson@theherald.canwest.com

===========================================================================================================

So, sounds like Larocque is not popular with her own constituents. Anyone going to put down money on her getting the punt?

[Beltliner]

Oh, shucky darn.... (http://www.am770chqr.com/news/news_local.cfm?cat=7428218912&rem=75401&red=80121823aPBIny&wids=400&gi=1&gm=news_local.cfm) :D


O'Malley Voluntarily Steps Aside From Election
Sep, 24 2007 - 3:10 PM

CALGARY/AM770CHQR - Embattled former cathlic school trustee Michael O'Malley has thrown in the towel.
The city's returning officer confirms O'Malley has voluntarily withdrawn candidacy from the school board election.
Barb Clifford says his name is still on the ballot because they were printed before a judge ruled last week O'Malley couldn't run in the next two elections.
But there will be disclaimers at polling stations telling voters O'Malley is not an eligible candidate, and if he's elected, he's not eligible to serve his term.

[Beltliner]

Couple of quick hits about Silly Season from today's rags...

First off--corblimey, guv, but 'ere's a real surprise from the Scum's favourite palaeocon (http://calsun.canoe.ca/News/Columnists/Jackson_Paul/2007/09/25/4523826.php), oi wot?


Tue, September 25, 2007

'Dr. No' needs reinforcements

By PAUL JACKSON

I sit down with Ald. Ric McIver and start off in hearty fashion by telling him in my book he represents the best of city council.

To which, he does not entirely disagree, though he does suggest some of his high profile is not due entirely his own diligent work.

The Ward 12 representative blames it squarely on our own caustic columnist, Rick Bell. It was Bell who coined the monicker "Dr. No" for McIver and Rick's take on Ric has stuck.

But McIver insists he does not give the thumbs down to just about everything that comes before him.

"I vote yes 75 percent of the time, and on the other 25 percent I think about it very deeply before I vote no."

One presumes he also thinks about it just as deeply before he votes yes 75 percent of the time.

Says McIver, "we are a big city and it takes a lot of money to run a big city, but council must be custodians of the taxpayers' money. We can't just spend it willy-nilly."

Ah, if only every other alderman felt the same.

It now takes $2.2 billion to run the city and it's going to take more in future. It doesn't matter where that money comes from -- raised municipally or from the province -- for as McIver frequently points out, there is only one taxpayer.

Whether we send our taxes directly to city coffers or indirectly to provincial coffers, or in an even more roundabout way to federal coffers, it still comes out of one pocket.

So one can't just allow politicians -- municipal, provincial or federal -- to throw money around on pet projects taxpayers neither need nor can afford.

Hence, at the municipal level McIver surely is the taxpayers' best watchdog.

Come the municipal ballot on Oct. 15, we'll see how awake voters are when it comes to who serves them best on council.

Frankly, with the occasional exception -- Ward 5's Ray Jones, Ward 10's Andre Chabot, and Ward 11's Barry Erskine, who is leaving municipal politics -- we aren't served as well as we could be.

In a city that is very much Conservative and entrepreneurial, we have for the most part a liberal-left council with seats held by individuals who have little business sense, if any.

It's bewildering we would vote conservative heavily both provincially and federally, yet let liberal-left types take over our affairs at the local level.

I've spoken to several aldermanic candidates about this, as well as to McIver and Chabot, and they blame both a sad lack of interest in municipal politics, and the fact that since aldermanic candidates do not run under a party label, the liberal-left set can shade political leanings until they are elected.

Once elected, with those already on council having a higher profile -- and generally far more money to spend on a campaign than do new candidates --it's hard to get them out.

That's too bad, because a municipal government is the closest government to the people.

Three top-notch candidates who'd add substance to council are Jim Stevenson, running in Ward 3 against Helene Larocque, Steve Chapman in Ward 8 against Madeleine King, and Al Koenig in Ward 9 against Joe Ceci.

Larocque, King and Ceci are all of the liberal-left, while the three contenders have solid conservative credentials. On top of that, Stevenson and Chapman have entrepreneurial backgrounds, and Koenig is head of the Calgary Police Association.

We really need to give the likes of McIver and Chabot some more muscle on council, and we'll have a chance to do that on Oct. 15. Let's hope we see something of a political earthquake that day.


Also, Don Braid thinks Alnoob's reality check just bounced (http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/columnists/story.html?id=446b7a33-37cb-442c-b0f9-9118dd1861ea):


Kassam's allegations missing the mark
Don Braid, Calgary Herald
Published: Tuesday, September 25, 2007

Mayoral candidate Alnoor Kassam's slam-a-day campaign is tough, lively and certainly well-financed. On billboards and radio, the attacks on Dave Bronconnier are escalating with a fine fury.

In principle, this is good: democracy at work and all that. It would be even better, though, if more of Kassam's allegations had some connection to facts.

We can tolerate a bit of laxity. This is politics, not Bible school. But when the allegations are just wrong, there's really no value to them.

On Monday, for instance, Kassam's team blasted Bronconnier for being in favour of urban sprawl.

The example they used was the new community of Mahogany, which they said will have a density of only seven units per acre (0.4 hectares).

In truth, the community is being planned for a density of 11.2 units per acre. One call to city hall will confirm this; so will a few clicks on the city website.

Seven units is the minimum density for most new development. That used to be the maximum, but a couple of years ago, in a sprawl-fighting mood, council turned this ceiling into the mandatory floor. Now developers voluntarily plan densities higher than seven.

Calgary is often blasted for sprawl by national studies and surveys. It's an easy allegation to make, especially at election time.

But there's something wrong, wouldn't you say, when Toronto seems to have less official sprawl than Calgary?

Calgary is a uni-city that includes every living thing from city hall to the lonely gophers out past Spruce Meadows.

In Toronto, Vancouver or Montreal, suburbs and their goat pastures are part of outlying municipalities -- Whitby, Burnaby or Dollard des Ormeaux.

The City of Vancouver itself is a dense central area of about 600,000. This looks great on the surveys. Nobody mentions that the larger metro area, sprawling over vast spaces, is home to more than two million.

Kassam's second blast Monday was a radio ad saying Bronconnier wants new taxes to make your home more expensive, and raise the price of hockey and movie tickets.

The reality is that municipalities proposed such taxes last spring because they were so short of infrastructure money.

The province rejected the proposal, pending further discussion.

Then the cities and the province finally reached a 10-year infrastructure funding deal. Municipalities, including Calgary, have now dropped the demand for new taxes.

Two provincial sources told me Monday that any thought of enabling new municipal taxes is as dead as last week's caucus pizza. It is not an issue at the civic or provincial level.

Finally, Kassam called last week for five-year dog licences because so many people find annual renewals annoying.

Of course, they do. Renewing is easy to forget and if you fail to do it, a bylaw officer will show up on your doorstep. Fido had better not bark while you're claiming he's dead.

But Kassam's scolding for civic inefficiency is misplaced. Bill Bruce, the city bylaw boss, is already preparing to roll out a plan for one-year, five-year or lifetime licences.

Opposition in this election is great. Spending is fine, too. Anybody who hopes to unhorse Bronconnier had better have plenty of cash in his pocket.

Unfortunately, a credible campaign also needs something more -- accuracy.

[Boris2k7]

I've always liked Don Braid's articles. He has a good head on his shoulders, and it's great when someone uncovers the facts behind the rantings. I don't care much for Bronconnier's position in regards to sprawl (it's more than obvious that he is in somebody's pocket, like all mayoral candidates), but you have to give council credit for what they've done in recent years with suburban densities.

On the other hand, Paul Jackson just reminded me of the various reasons that I don't read the Sun. Anyone who rants nowadays about the "liberal left" clearly isn't worth listening to. Yes, we need to populate council with reactionaries, neoconservatives, and nutbars of all sorts.

Rest assured that if Ric McIver, Steve Chapman, or Al Koenig were in charge of the city, we would see a dramatic shift in spending.

There'd be more emphasis on moving private vehicles around the city than public transit, thus leading to an infrastructure deficit as road infrastructure can't keep up with the increase in demand from private vehicles. Oh noes, we keep building all these wide roads and there are more and more cars! What will we do!? I know why we have an infrastructure deficit, it clearly is the province's fault! Let's whine for more money, it worked for Bronco, right?

There'd be less money spent on affordable housing and more going to the police department increasing the number of homeless and also the amount of police picking up those same homeless people. Wait, did I say they were picking up homeless people? In fact, they are too busy giving people speeding tickets in far-flung suburbs.

There'd also be a halt on the progressive increase in city taxes, causing more projects such as our city attractions to be sacrificed in the name of the people. After all, who cares about the Zoo when little Jimmy (who's parents live in Ward 12) can't get a new X360?

(It's too bad that Jimmy will NEED a car when he hits university, as there will be no LRT either, there's just not enough taxes, all the rest have been spent building an interchange in Shawnessy and it'll have to be put on a study to be approved for a budget 5 years from now, after which it will go through another review process...)

Oh, and that LRT you say you wanted to get to the airport... why should we do that? You should know by now that the government needs to stay out of private business. Let the cab companies handle it. We'll worry about the shortage of cab drivers later.

[Beltliner]

On the other hand, Paul Jackson just reminded me of the various reasons that I don't read the Sun. Anyone who rants nowadays about the "liberal left" clearly isn't worth listening to. Yes, we need to populate council with reactionaries, neoconservatives, and nutbars of all sorts.

Rest assured that if Ric McIver, Steve Chapman, or Al Koenig were in charge of the city, we would see a dramatic shift in spending.

Arright, arright, Boris, that's enough preaching to the choir already.... ;)

Steve Chapman's fundament will never see the cushions of a City Council chair if I have anything to say about it. Right now, I'm leaning to the candidate who actually answered my mail--Luhnau.


Oh, and that LRT you say you wanted to get to the airport... why should we do that? You should know by now that the government needs to stay out of private business. Let the cab companies handle it. We'll worry about the shortage of cab drivers later.

I defy you to watch the nightly Yellow Cab Convention in the parking lot of the Beltline Mac's/Timmy's and tell me we're short of taxi drivers in this burg. :P

[wild wild west]

Re: the Paul Jackson article, I think he is too quick to paint alderman with an ideological brush. I tend to lean rightward myself, and while I do think we need a few conservatives on Council to provide some balance, but I don't think being left-wing means an alderman is not doing a good job.

Helene Larocque hasn't been a particularly effective alderman, and I think Jim Stevenson would be an excellent replacement. He's been heavily involved in municipal affairs, including sitting on city committees including SDAB. Larocque was a rookie who clearly didn't have the knowledge base to be an effective alderman, but Stevenson is already intimately familiar with the intricacies of City Hall.

Al Koenig is certainly a remarkable individual with some impressive accomplishments in his life, but Joe Ceci is a hardworking, knowledgeable alderman who has done a great job in representing his ward. Another "leftie" who has been a great alderman is Bob Hawkesworth.

I think experience, commitment, some knowledge of urban planning and an understanding of the roles and responsibilities of municipal government are far more important criteria in determining how good a job someone will do as aldermen than what political party they most identify with.

[Boris2k7]

Arright, arright, Boris, that's enough preaching to the choir already.... ;)

Hey, you in the back, I'm preachin' here! I've got NIMBY's to slay, and lurkers to convert! :speech: :D

I defy you to watch the nightly Yellow Cab Convention in the parking lot of the Beltline Mac's/Timmy's and tell me we're short of taxi drivers in this burg. :P

Can't the same be said for the cops? :haha:

[Beltliner]

Can't the same be said for the cops? :haha:

With all the cabs, there's never a place for Constable Plod to park! :haha:

[Wooster]

Beltliner, you might want to think about voting strategically in ward 8 though. The fascist Chapman only came within 160 some odd votes of winning over King last time.

King, for all her faults is a staunch allie in the urban fight. None of what you see going on in the Beltline, the passing of the Blueprint, the ARP, Centre City, the new park west of safran, the new police officers and by-law, the CSO pilot would have happened without her. As an employee of Beltline Communities, we constantly see her - and is squarely on our side.

A vote for Luhnau is a vote for Steve Chapman unfortunately. Luhnau and Mar have NO presence in anything Beltline - have never shown up to an event or meeting of any kind. Even Chapman shows up to things.

[srperrycgy]

King, for all her faults is a staunch allie in the urban fight. None of what you see going on in the Beltline, the passing of the Blueprint, the ARP, Centre City, the new park west of safran, the new police officers and by-law, the CSO pilot would have happened without her. As an employee of Beltline Communities, we constantly see her - and is squarely on our side.


I appreciate that information Josh. But as you have described her working hard for the Beltline, she has to realize that her ward goes beyond Crowchild and she would need to represent us in Killarney/Glengarry too. I wouldn't vote for Chapman (anti-gay, Chandler's Bitch), Mar is unknown, and Luhnau appeals to me as an alternative, but unknown as well. I hadn't considered vote-splitting before as I don't cast any votes (prov., fed.) with that in mind. This time I probably will.

[Beltliner]

Beltliner, you might want to think about voting strategically in ward 8 though. The fascist Chapman only came within 160 some odd votes of winning over King last time.

King, for all her faults is a staunch allie in the urban fight. None of what you see going on in the Beltline, the passing of the Blueprint, the ARP, Centre City, the new park west of safran, the new police officers and by-law, the CSO pilot would have happened without her. As an employee of Beltline Communities, we constantly see her - and is squarely on our side.

A vote for Luhnau is a vote for Steve Chapman unfortunately. Luhnau and Mar have NO presence in anything Beltline - have never shown up to an event or meeting of any kind. Even Chapman shows up to things.

Strategic voting? Strategic voting? :yuck: :yuck: :yuck: :yuck: :yuck:

Arright, Josh, I'll give her one more shot at answering a few bloomin' simple questions--but only because of your interlocution on her behalf. If she doesn't take the hint, I'm a free agent. Deal?

[Wooster]

I appreciate that information Josh. But as you have described her working hard for the Beltline, she has to realize that her ward goes beyond Crowchild and she would need to represent us in Killarney/Glengarry too. I wouldn't vote for Chapman (anti-gay, Chandler's Bitch), Mar is unknown, and Luhnau appeals to me as an alternative, but unknown as well. I hadn't considered vote-splitting before as I don't cast any votes (prov., fed.) with that in mind. This time I probably will.

I'm curious what issues killarney/glengarry are facing these days.

Beltliner - what email are you sending to madeleine? What kinds of questions are you looking to get answered?

[Beltliner]

I'm curious what issues killarney/glengarry are facing these days.

Beltliner - what email are you sending to madeleine? What kinds of questions are you looking to get answered?

Ooh-er. This is the message I sent all four of 'em on 28 August:


Thank you so much right off the bat for putting yourself forward as a candidate for Ward Eight of Calgary’s City Council this October.

I’ve taken the opportunity to visit your campaign website, and you have rised some intriguing ideas about where you see the Beltline going over the next few years. Given that life in the Beltline has given me some ideas about mass transit, public safety, open communication, and quality of life that I would consider to be in my interest to have addressed, I came up with a few questions that I am posing to you and to all of the candidates for the Ward Eight seat on City Council:

Focus on Community:

F1. Please describe how the most important lesson you learnt in working with your community league is relevant to your work as an alderman.

F2. Please recount a situation wherein you were able to respond constructively to a commercial development proposal for your community that in your estimation was poorly conceived.

Responsiveness:

R1. Please identify the criteria you would use to differentiate between correspondence you would delegate to your constituency assistant and correspondence to which you would respond personally.

R2. Please summarise how you would follow up a query from a constituent who previously called 311 to report a case of vandalism and who has now contacted you to ask why the vandalism has not been remediated.

Addressing Concerns:

A1. Please indicate how you would respond to a constituent's concern that the employees of a city department on whose services the constituent depends for day-to-day living are contemplating a labour disruption that would bring these services to a halt.

A2. Please articulate your position on how you would improve the connection of the western communities of the Beltline (that is, between 4 Street SW and 14 Street SW) to the CTrain system and to other modes of transportation across the CP Rail right of way into the downtown core.

Credibility:

C1. Please explain, in light of Calgary's recent land annexation, how you would reconcile the need to provide civic infrastructure to new communities on the city periphery with the need to maintain and enhance the social, environmental, and structural conditions of such inner-city communities as the Beltline.

C2. Please clarify where you stand on how Calgary's growth in population and international awareness over the past ten years affects its standing and its mandate for action on behalf of its citizenry relative to those of the provincial and federal governments.

Tiebreaker Questions, to be scored individually if needed:

T1. Please compare the relative merits of the existing strategy for planning and building the north-centre line of the CTrain system to those of constructing an underground LRT line beneath Centre Street.

T2. Please suggest a workable public safety strategy for residents of the city centre who have expressed concerns about openly illegal activities on commercial sites immediately adjoining critical locations within the public realm.

For your convenience, I [attached to the original message] an MS Excel workbook that includes both these questions and a description of the scoring system for your responses. As a matter of fairness, and in the interest of full disclosure, I should mention that I maintain a blog (http://beltliner.blogspot.com/) in which I post occasional observations about life in the Beltline, the universe, and everything—I hope you’ll take a moment to visit it soon. Please note that your responses may well be posted here for the edification and amusement of my readers (both of them).

Thank you so much for your response to these questions. I look forward to hearing from you very soon.

[ScottFromCalgary]

^Well there's your problem. This isn't isn't a job interview for middle management. It's politics. What is right/most effective has absolutely no relevance to these people. All that matters is getting elected, and people don't vote based on the nitty gritty. Give us a good headline and some charming comments to Barb Higgins at 6 o'clock and we'll be smitten like a little girl who just found a kitten.

[Wooster]

Strategic voting? Strategic voting? :yuck: :yuck: :yuck: :yuck: :yuck:

Arright, Josh, I'll give her one more shot at answering a few bloomin' simple questions--but only because of your interlocution on her behalf. If she doesn't take the hint, I'm a free agent. Deal?

I understand the disdain for strategic voting. I too don't really like it but sometimes I feel it necessary. Hey, I know several people on here, including my brother who took out conservative memberships in order to try and get Dinning in and to keep Morton out. He had to get drunk beforehand, but such is the unfortunate reality of politics.

[Wooster]

^Well there's your problem. This isn't isn't a job interview for middle management. It's politics. What is right/most effective has absolutely no relevance to these people. All that matters is getting elected, and people don't vote based on the nitty gritty. Give us a good headline and some charming comments to Barb Higgins at 6 o'clock and we'll be smitten like a little girl who just found a kitten.

I think many who go into municipal politics actually do care very deeply about the issues and communities. They definitely aren't doing it for the salary, and certainly not the horrible hours. To me, it seems like a hellish job.

[Boris2k7]

Candidate pledges 10 new recreation centres
Kim Guttormson, Calgary Herald
Published: Thursday, September 27, 2007

Alnoor Kassam would build a new recreation centre every year for a decade if elected mayor, he said Wednesday.

However, a major portion of the funding for his proposal hinges on a provincial program that ends in 2008-09.

And while $35 million is allocated to Calgary this year and next through the Alberta Lottery Fund, municipalities and community groups must apply to access the money.

Kassam's promise calls for construction of 10 recreation centres containing arenas. He would use money from the city's existing budget -- $10 million a year, which he says will be found through efficiencies.

"There's already some allocation (in the city budget)," Kassam said. "It seems to be hit and miss, and if you look at the current result in the last six years the mayor's been there, there's still a shortage (of recreation facilities)."

Kassam is hoping to unseat Dave Bronconnier as mayor.

The rest of the money -- it costs about $9 million just to build a stand-alone arena with a single sheet of ice -- would come from partnerships with developers, naming rights, money from other levels of government and funding through the Alberta Lottery Fund, Kassam said.

However, while Kassam's campaign said it could access up to half the cost through the Alberta Lottery Fund, the guidelines limit the province to paying for one-third of any project over $500,000.

Kassam's staff said the centres would be built on existing city land -- such as the joint-use sites developers must leave in new communities for fire halls and schools.

With its rapid growth, the city doesn't have enough indoor and outdoor recreation facilities to accommodate increasing demand. A study this year determined Calgary needs at least another 10 arenas over the next 10 years.

Jeremy Zhao, who is also running for mayor, said Kassam's promise seems too optimistic.

"I don't know how you can say you'll build a rec centre every year," the university student said. "I don't know how you get the money instantly and quickly enough to go ahead with it."

Bronconnier's camp wouldn't comment on Kassam's pledge, but Bronconnier will make his own announcement on funding recreation centres this morning at a Calgary Sport Council breakfast.

Kassam also promised to survey the state of city sports fields -- although the city has already begun a review. As well, the Calgary Sport Council is conducting a review of the needs of all sports groups in the city.

Kassam said the city does too many studies.

kguttormson@theherald.canwest.com

[Boris2k7]

Growth outpaces services
Jamie Komarnicki, Calgary Herald
Published: Thursday, September 27, 2007

Today, the Herald begins its series of ward profiles, which outline the candidates and explore issues that make the communities distinct.

Today: Ward 1
Friday: Ward 2

- - -

Day and night, Duane Page hears cars revving recklessly down the street outside his Tuscany home.

Residents of the fast-growing northwest community were thrilled when their new elementary school opened this January, but they didn't anticipate the slew of speeders ignoring the school zone limits on their streets.

"We don't want to wait until somebody gets hurt before we do anything," said Page, who lives across from Tuscany Elementary School and launched a campaign, putting up signs and handing out flyers, urging drivers to slow down.

Page isn't the only one worried -- the local community association marks speeding as one of its top concerns.

But traffic woes are just one of the issues dogging the northwest corner of the city, which saw a huge influx of residents trekking to the suburbs in the past decade.

The area has seen continued growth, with nearly 14,000 new residents since the last civic election in 2004.

Work has begun on a massive project approved by council in April 2005 to widen Crowchild Trail and extend the northwest LRT to help ease transit in the area.

Newcomers looking to set down roots are grappling with the crunch for city services that comes with such rapid growth.

Transportation, schools and a regional leisure centre are some of the chief issues in Ward 1.

"Just getting adequate coverage across the whole area is an interesting challenge," said Calgary's longest serving alderman, Dale Hodges, who is seeking his ninth term representing the sweeping ward.

With 24 years as alderman on his resume, Hodges says he's a dependable voice for the ward and has insight into council's agenda.

He cruised to victory in 2004, easily outpacing lone challenger Normand Perrault, who is back on the ballot this year.

But after nearly a quarter of a century with the same representative, candidates Perrault, a retired general contractor, and Jennifer Banks, a social worker, are hoping to shake things up.

And not just in the suburbs. Coffee-shop talk in the communities centres around a slate of new issues in the ward's mixed bag of neighbourhoods, residents say.

Students clustered around the University of Calgary are struggling for housing in a city where vacancy rates hover below one per cent -- and city council is deadlocked on legalizing secondary suites.

And a business renaissance is creating buzz in historic Bowness, the independent area annexed by Calgary in 1963, as locals lobby to brand the neighbourhood as a mountain town within the big city.

In the past five years, Alex Solano, owner of Salt & Pepper Mexican Restaurante, said he's watched several new businesses come and go on main street Bowness.

A community known more for crime than creativity in past decades, Bowness has seen young, professional couples moving into the neighbourhood, he said.

Unlike its newer counterparts in Ward 1, Bowness isn't lacking in schools and social services, but Solano says he's worried about resistance to the urban redevelopment that might block his neighbourhood's growth.

"There are really artistic, imaginative people who'd like to do something really cool in Bowness, but they're just getting, 'No, no, no, this is how we do it. It's the traditional way,' " said Solano, who added he'd like to see more commercial and residential mixed use and an easing of single-family residential zoning.

Despite the diversity of the ward, it's parents weary of carting children around to various sporting events across the city who have crafted the cause that all candidates are eager to champion: building a regional leisure centre in the northwest.

"I think people recognize that having a recreational centre in your community is a great way to meet your neighbours, to cut down your time transporting your kids around," Banks said.

Newer areas such as Tuscany are hit especially hard by the lack of a sports facility, Perrault said.

Suburban isolation has started setting in for some northwest residents longing for their own recreation centre.

But members of the Tuscany Community Association are holding their breath today, hoping for a promise from Hodges and Dave Bronconnier, who's running a mayoral re-election campaign, about the coveted facility.

"There's only one thing that I want to hear," said William Thompson, the association's president.

"Our hopes are that . . . they will announce funding for new recreational centres, because the northwest is sort of void as far as recreation centres, and that obviously they'll put us into a position to get a facility with that money."

Still, as the newer communities settle in, their young populations are growing as well, Thompson said. And that puts a whole host of new concerns -- middle schools and high schools, crime control, roads development -- on the wish list for the coming term, he said.

jkomarnicki@theherald.canwest.com

At a Glance: Ward 1

Candidates

- Jennifer Banks
Age: 35
Occupation: Social worker
Marital status: Lives with partner

- Dale Hodges
Age: 66
Occupation: Served as alderman since 1983
Marital status: Married, no kids

- Normand Perrault
Age: 57
Occupation: Retired general contractor
Marital status: Divorced, three sons

Profile

Population: 89,576
Change since 2004: +13,951
Number of seniors (over 65): 8,169*
Number of children and youth (under 20): 21,264*
Number of occupied dwellings: 34,060
Home ownership: 26,423 (77.6 per cent)

Communities in ward: Bowness, Cougar Ridge, Crestmont, Greenwood- Greenbriar, Montgomery, Rocky Ridge, Royal Oak, Scenic Acres, Silver Springs, Tuscany, University Heights, University of Calgary, Valley Ridge and Varsity.

Source: 2007 Civic Census
* Based on 2006 numbers (some ward boundaries changed in 2007)

Online Extras
Visit our website for more civic election coverage, including more about Ward 1 and the opinions of the candidates running for alderman.

CalgaryHerald.com

[lubicon]

This guy must be on crack if he thinks $10 million will buy a 'rec entre', unless he has very diferent ideas of what a rec centre is than the rest of us do. Last I heard, the new proposed rec entre in the NE (around Saddleridge) was originally budgeted at about $25-30 million a few years ago when it was first conceived and the latest estimates have it at about $125 mil, and it will have indoor soccer not hockey. Do these people think we are that gullable to believe.

To be fair, Bronco is not a whole lot better. He just announced he would build 3 new rec centres (NE, NW, and SE). As mentioned above, the NE centre is already under consideration by the city, and Dale Hodges told our community hockey association last winter that the NW centre is next and they have a tentative location picked out already. It would not surprise me if preliminary plans are already in place for the SE one too. It's a little misleading to tell people he will spearhead all these things when the city already has plans to go ahead with them regardless of who is mayor.

[ScottFromCalgary]

Growth outpaces services
Jamie Komarnicki, Calgary Herald
Published: Thursday, September 27, 2007

Maybe if the main road through Tuscany wasn't the size of a divided four lane freeway people wouldn't be so inclined to speed down the hills.

[Boris2k7]

Heh, indeed. When I still was driving, my friends and I would race down 162nd and James McKevitt, simply because those two roads are so damn wide! (Not to mention that the entire south is rather anti-pedestrian, so we never had to worry about people at 11:00PM) Stupid, but true.

The title "Growth outpaces services" makes me want to respond:

"Yeah? No shit."

[You Need A Thneed]

=It's a little misleading to tell people he will spearhead all these things when the city already has plans to go ahead with them regardless of who is mayor.

I don't really think that this announcement has anything to do with the campaign, it just happened after the provincial funding agreement. I suppose that it's probobly beneficial to Bronco's campaign that it just happened to be during the campaign time, so yes, its probobly a bit mis leading. A few years down the road, I'll love the Northeast Centre of Community, it's about a two minute walk away from my house.

[You Need A Thneed]

dp

[Sir.Humphrey.Appleby]

I don't really think that this announcement has anything to do with the campaign, it just happened after the provincial funding agreement. I suppose that it's probobly beneficial to Bronco's campaign that it just happened to be during the campaign time, so yes, its probobly a bit mis leading. A few years down the road, I'll love the Northeast Centre of Community, it's about a two minute walk away from my house.

Its a Campaign Announcement, since he has it on his campaign website Link (http://joindave.com/newsandevents_pressrelease.cfm)

He has no power to make any plans of this nature without City Council, so he can' justifiably make announcements as 'Mayor' during an election unless it is on an issue which he is intrusted power by Council. An example of this was the ParkPlus announcement.

Do you think he really fought Stelmach to delay the deal until right before the election to get a deal with no strings? (He committed to funding affordable housing at the level of the strings that were the big issue)

He delayed the deal so he could announce all these things during the election campaign.

It is pretty simple politics, run against someone of another level of government, then spend spend spend during the election.

[You Need A Thneed]

Its a Campaign Announcement, since he has it on his campaign website Link (http://joindave.com/newsandevents_pressrelease.cfm)

He has no power to make any plans of this nature without City Council, so he can' justifiably make announcements as 'Mayor' during an election unless it is on an issue which he is intrusted power by Council. An example of this was the ParkPlus announcement.

Do you think he really fought Stelmach to delay the deal until right before the election to get a deal with no strings? (He committed to funding affordable housing at the level of the strings that were the big issue)

He delayed the deal so he could announce all these things during the election campaign.

It is pretty simple politics, run against someone of another level of government, then spend spend spend during the election.

Sure, but like lubicon said, these rec centres were going to be built in the near future anyway, no matter who is elected mayor.

[freeweed]

:previous: What the sweet &^!@#& do marital status and number of children have to do with ANYTHING?

Just when I think I can take politics seriously again, the media trots out some more irrelevant personal details to remind me of why the whole process is such a farce. What is this, the 1950s? Why not report on what church the candidates go to; after all, I wouldn't want to vote for someone of the wrong faith.