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City of Red Deer

Mayor Tara Veer will not run for a third term

Published

3 years ago

9 minute read

An open letter to my fellow Red Deerians,

Serving as your Mayor for the past eight years, and as a City Councillor for the nine years preceding has been an incredible honour; I am grateful to the people of the city that we are fortunate to call our home for the opportunity to govern as your chief public servant and to represent you as our city’s ambassador to our province and country.  After seventeen years of elected service, I have decided to conclude my municipal service in order to pursue my next professional opportunity.

The people of our city have been my life’s focus for nearly two decades, and I want to thank all our citizens for trusting me with the honour of leading our city. In seeking public office, my prevailing purpose has been to provide common sense solutions, bridge-building, people-first local government, principles that I strongly believe we need in provincial and federal government as well.

I am profoundly humbled by the many citizens who have reached out to me over the last few weeks and months encouraging me to seek re-election.  Your messages of support and hope for our city mean the world to me. Please know that the sunset on this season of my public service will mark the dawn of new possibilities for me to give back to our community.

I would also like to thank my Council colleagues, our City of Red Deer staff, and especially my amazing team in the Mayor’s Office, for their devotion to our public. Public service is rarely easy and is not for the fainthearted, but it is always worth it.

We have come through an incredibly challenging time. At times we were in it together, and at others it grieves me to observe that we were not; however, I am confident that we are on the imminent horizon of finding our way back to community.

However, challenges are not, nor will they ever be, our full community story.  Over the past couple of years, our community has achieved so much, we have: pulled together to envision and fulfill our city’s largest infrastructure build in our community’s history (I’m particularly proud we were able to do this by attracting new investment to our city, not through local tax burden), successfully advocated to ensure that Red Deer’s longstanding provincial and federal infrastructure deficits are addressed, and completely overhauled our city’s laws and modernized City services to ensure our community possibilities became our reality; our hard work, common sense, people-first, find-our-way-to-yes approach will pay future dividends through the transformations, some even generational, that we collectively secured through our commitment to community building.

The next Council will have both opportunities and challenges, without a doubt. However, if they pull together, if we pull together, as the community that I know we are, and build on the foundation that we have firmly established, the next generation of community possibilities will also become our reality. Today, I can proudly assert and leave with confidence in the knowledge that we are on the threshold of hope and optimism. Within the next four years:

  • Our modernized and financially sustainable City services will position our next Council to pursue new and innovative opportunities and services for our citizens.
  • The catalysing investments underway in Capstone will mark the beginning of our new downtown and transformed community life.
  • The justice centre under construction will transform our downtown economy, bring job stability and improve the administration of justice for our community.
  • The residential treatment centre will help resolve the many life-altering personal and public consequences of additions we are facing.
  • The first phase of hospital expansion will help close the health services differential in cardiac care that Central Albertans have contended with for many years.
  • RDC’s transition into a Polytechnic will mean that we not only keep our degree-bound population, but will also attract new population and further stabilize our local economy through new jobs.
  • The private sector construction currently underway due to The City’s new building and revitalization incentives will benefit our tax base for decades to come.
  • The people of Red Deer will assume ownership over the Michener North lands, protecting and reimagining this important and historic public park node, providing a once-in-a-generation opportunity for our community.
  • The G.H. Dawe Centre renovation and expansion will mark the completion of the upgrades of all existing City recreation infrastructure, positioning us for the next generation of new infrastructure (and, yes, our recent Council decisions will position a future Council to build the aquatics centre, ceasing a 20-year debate).
  • Our recent agreements and new opportunities with our local indigenous community are foundational for our new era of relationship and reconciliation.
  • The construction of the 24/7 emergency shelter we have secured infrastructure funds for will significantly help to resolve the consequences of the social infrastructure deficit that vulnerable citizens, downtown businesses, and services providers are facing. Recent, key decisions of Council will also help resolve the affordable housing shortage in our community.
  • We are making progress on systematically addressing many of our ongoing safety challenges, but the next term will allow us to experience the results of many new initiatives and pilots underway to return our city to safety, if we remain steadfast.
  • World Juniors, among other national and international events that we are poised to welcome, will bring the international community together and reignite the power of sports to bring community and country together once again and strengthen our local tourism economy.
  • We will need to sustain our joint community fight to return ambulance dispatch to local communities. This is a life and death matter. My advocacy on this front will not cease with my Mayorship. I will continue to voice this issue as a private citizen and in my next professional spheres of influence.

There will be time in the coming weeks for me to recount what I am especially proud of during my Mayorship, and to reflect on the adversities we have overcome that I firmly believe will prove to refine and not define us. For now, though, in both life and leadership, there is a common question that we all must recon with: did I leave it better than I found it? Today, I confidently turn the page knowing that I have kept the promises I made to you in the past five municipal elections. The history we have written together will one day have the perspective of time, and I trust the the prevailing answer will point to the transformation that we have achieved together in our city over the past eight years.

While I am moving on in title, I will remain a steadfast advocate for the city we are fortunate to call our home. My mandate from you as your Mayor marked the fulfillment of a lifelong dream for me, and I am profoundly grateful to you all for the strong trust you have given me throughout the past 17 years. It has been an incredible and treasured chapter, and I am anticipating all that is to come in my next one with you.

With gratitude, my citizens.

Your Mayor,

 

Her Worship, Mayor Tara Veer

City of Red Deer

 

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City of Red Deer

Over 25 Canadian cities support initiative designating December as Christian Heritage Month

Published on November 5, 2024

By

From LifeSiteNews

By Anthony Murdoch

Major cities that have signed on include Ajax, Durham, Sudbury, Mississauga, Ottawa, and Niagara Falls in Ontario, Alberta municipalities Red Deer and Okotoks, and Regina and Saskatoon in Saskatchewan. In British Columbia, Whistler and Prince George have also signed the petition.

More than 25 Canadian municipalities signed onto a proclamation declaring December as “Christian Heritage Month.”

The proclamation also asks provinces to take the initiative to declare the last month of the year in recognition of Christianity as an important part of Canadian heritage given the fact other faiths have special months of their own.

Major cities that have signed on include Ajax, Durham, Sudbury, Mississauga, Ottawa, and Niagara Falls in Ontario, Alberta municipalities Red Deer and Okotoks, and Regina and Saskatoon in Saskatchewan. In British Columbia, Whistler and Prince George have also signed the petition.

All of the cities have pledged to bring forth legislation that enshrines December as Christian Heritage Month into local law. Many have already done so.

The move by Canadian cities comes after the federal government and provincial governments have yet to proclaim December as Chrisitan Heritage Month.

According to the Christian Heritage Month Initiative, its mission is to have December “declared as Christian Heritage Month, recognizing the values of love, service, and compassion that define the Christian community.”

“The Christian Heritage Month Initiative is a dynamic, multi-denominational movement dedicated to celebrating the vibrant cultural, social, and artistic contributions of Canada’s Christian community,” the initiative says.

The initiative is under the leadership of Jay and Molly Banerjei, who are behind the Christian Music Festival. The organization says that the initiative “unites diverse voices and fosters a sense of belonging, enriching our nation’s identity and promoting inclusivity for all.”

Looking at Mississauga’s recent council motion that designates December as Christian Heritage Month, councillors have said its province under Premier Doug Ford should do the same.

It reads that Christianity is among the “diverse faiths followed by Mississauga residents and one of the most followed religions in Canada and Mississauga. Christians have made valuable contributions to the cultural, social, religious, and humanitarian fabric of our city and have played an important role in shaping our diverse community.”

The Mississauga motion also makes a point that December is “marked by significant events and celebrations in the Christian calendar, commencing with the observance of Advent and culminating in the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ, which is also known as Christmas.”

“Christian organizations and places of worship in Mississauga offer religious services, unique events, and initiatives that highlight a strong Christian heritage during the month of December,” and it’s “also widely associated with the tradition of gift giving and the gathering of family, friends, and people of all faiths, during the Christmas season,” its councillors wrote.

“Recognizing the month of December, which is a significant month in the Christian calendar, as Christian Heritage Month provides an opportunity for all residents to celebrate the history, traditions, and teachings of the Christian faith, promoting understanding and appreciation of the diverse religious and cultural heritage of our city.”

Canada is historically a nation founded on Christian ideals and principles. European settlers who came to Canada from France and then later from what is the modern-day United Kingdom were Christian and included missionaries who tried to spread the faith to the local Indigenous populations.

Canada has observed Christmas since 1641, well before its official founding, according to some historical records.

As reported by LifeSiteNews, Conservative Party of Canada (CPC) MPs have urged all Canadians to support a petition that calls on the federal government to proclaim December as “Christian Heritage Month.”

Last year, CPC MP Marilyn Gladu introduced a Private Member’s Bill C-369 that would designate December as “Christian Heritage Month,” saying this is only the “fair and right” thing to do.

The bill reads that “In the negotiations that brought about Confederation, Canada was originally named ‘Dominion of Canada,’ a name reportedly inspired by the passage in the Bible (King James Version) at Psalm 72:8, which says, ‘He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, and from the river unto the ends of the earth.’”

The bill states that December in Canada marks “significant events and celebrations in the Christian calendar, from the beginning of Advent to the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ; And whereas, according to Statistics Canada’s 2021 Census of Population, Christianity is the largest religion in Canada, with over half of Canadians identifying as Christian.”

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City of Red Deer

City Council looking for options to reduce hundreds of encampments

Published on September 14, 2024

By

New actions for response to urban encampments being considered by City Council

New actions for The City’s response to urban encampments will be considered by Council on Monday, with a focus on interim and long-term solutions to homelessness. The proposed actions include everything from maintaining a balanced mitigation strategy to exploring interim housing solutions.

The report comes in response to Councillor Lee’s Notice of Motion re: Urban Encampment Responses that Council approved during the 2024 budget debate. The report reviews the past five years of data, analyzes service levels, and evaluates Corporate Administrative Policy 3141C – Urban Encampment Response. The key recommendations in the report focus on providing a balanced approach to mitigating the effects of encampments while working towards long-term solutions for homelessness. These recommendations include:

  • Consistent Mitigation: Maintain The City’s current approach to encampment responses, ensuring the most balanced mitigation strategy available at this time to protect public lands while supporting vulnerable individuals.
  • Advocacy for Shelter Strategy: Council will continue to advocate to the Government of Alberta for a comprehensive shelter strategy, including the development of a low-barrier 24/7 emergency shelter with a Recovery-Oriented System of Care.
  • Review of Transitional Housing: Request that the Housing and Homelessness Integrated Committee (HHIC) review the potential for new transitional housing infrastructure as an interim solution to support individuals transitioning out of homelessness.

“The City’s current policy is still achieving its target of having sites cleaned within 14 days. Despite a substantial increase in encampments, responses have continued to be increasingly efficient, largely due to enhanced relationships and experience levels,” said Jodi Kelloway, Acting Superintendent, Social Wellness and Integration Supports. “In recent months, we have seen a significant rise in the number of people experiencing homelessness, with shelters operating at or near capacity. Many individuals living in encampments have limited or no alternative options available. It is important that we continue to improve our response while building capacity within the housing continuum that considers current realities and the unique needs of community members who are unsheltered. The actions we propose in today’s report are about building and expanding on what we already do.”

Under the current policy, The City has a level of service that urban encampments, debris, and belongings are to be removed within 14 days of an initial report, 90 per cent of the time. While The City’s current response to urban encampments is effective, with 98 per cent of camps being cleaned up within 14 days, the number of encampments continues to rise. In 2023 alone, 881 encampments were dismantled, with a projected overall increase of 75 per cent by the end of 2024.

Costs related to encampment clean-up have reached approximately $2.87 million over the last five years, shared among several City departments, including Parks, Public Works, and Emergency Services. Despite increased efficiency, the growing number of encampments presents ongoing challenges and concerns.

The City’s Encampment Assertive Outreach team continues to engage individuals living in encampments, providing referrals to social and housing services. However, the report notes that many individuals face barriers to accessing shelter due to personal circumstances, such as the need for privacy, the ability to be with their partners, accommodation for pets or possessions, highlighting the ongoing need for tailored solutions.

Councillor Lee’s January 8, 2024, Notice of Motion called for administration to consider the following:

  • Reducing the time to dismantle encampments.
  • Preventing establishment of encampments.
  • Connecting rough sleepers with social supports and understanding overall community shelter capacity.
  • Develop recommendations for individuals setting up or using encampments to encourage them to seek alternative shelter.
  • How much money The City has spent on the cleanup of encampments over the past five years, and how much subsidy, if any, has been provided by other levels of government.
  • Including the continuum of housing that is currently available in Red Deer and what is needed.
  • That Administration report to council on the progress of the review of Corporate Administrative Policy 3141C – Urban Encampment Response”.

“The City of Red Deer is committed to supporting the health and safety of those sleeping rough, citizens who are enjoying parks, trails and public spaces, and staff responding to encampments,” said City Manager Tara Lodewyk. “Unfortunately, urban encampment work is a very short-term solution to a very complex health, housing, and public safety need in our community. The ability to reduce homelessness in Red Deer is significantly impacted by the lack of affordable and supportive housing supply. Until this is resolved, we will continue in this cycle of clean up.”

More detailed information is available in the City Council report located on the Council Meetings and Schedule page.

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