City council holding annual organizational meeting

By Al Beeber - Lethbridge Herald on October 22, 2024.

LETHBRIDGE HERALDabeeber@lethbridgeherald.com

City council will hold its annual organizational meeting followed by its regular meeting starting today at 12:30 p.m. in council chambers at City Hall.

A recommendation will be made at the organizational meeting by City Clerk Bonnie Hilford and Legislative Services Manager Ryan Westerson to make two one-year appointments of administration members to committees.

Those include Travis Grindle to the Combative Sports Commission and Doug Kaupp to the Oldman Watershed Council.

Council will also be asked to adopt the 2025 council and Standing Policy Committee meeting calendar.

The annual organizational meeting is a legislated requirement of council at which members must approve the council calendar for the following year. With a municipal election set for Oct. 20 of next year, there will be a hiatus on meetings from Nomination Day on Sept. 22 until election Day. The swearing in of the council-elect has been set for Monday, Oct. 27 of 2025.

Council is scheduled to meet twice monthly next year except in January when there is one meeting on the 21st, September when the only meeting is on the 16th and November when council will hold its organizational and regular meeting on the 3rd. No meeting will be held in August.

The regular council meeting will have 10 reports from SPCs or BCCs on the consent agenda including recommendations regarding the update to the Transportation Safety Plan and Bicycle Bylaw 6427.

Also on the consent agenda is a recommendation of the Economic and Finance Standing Policy Committee that council direct administration to return to the SPC in the first quarter of 2026 or earlier following the implementation of the province’s Bill 20 – which comes into effect later this month – with an overview of that bill’s impact on a municipal tax rebate program as well as funding options for council consideration and utilize guiding principles of a non-affordable housing tax grant program to evaluate any requests for funding in lieu of 2024 property taxes for affordable housing should they arise.

On Friday, the government announced that Bill 20, the Municipal Affairs Statutes Amendment Act, will become effective on Oct. 31.

Contained in Bill 20 are full exemptions for non-profit, affordable housing from property taxation.

Council will also be asked to give first reading to four bylaws. And council will be asked to approve a recommendation of the Economic and Finance SPC that it provide $560,000 to Streets Alive Mission for its supportive recovery housing project at 925 15 St. conditional to the securement of at least $560,000 in provincial or federal funding as well as the securement of the balance of project funding on or before June 30, 2025 and the successful acquisition of a building permit and provide the funding subject to the execution of the City’s third-party contribution agreement in a form with terms and conditions satisfactory to the City Manager and authorize the city manager and City Clerk to sign the agreement.

No presentations or submissions are on today’s agenda.