It’s a telling detail about the person who leads Red Deer City Council.  Always putting the city’s needs ahead of his own, Mayor Ken Johnston has announced his intentions within days of the opening of  Nominations for October’s municipal elections,

After 12 years on council, Mayor Ken Johnston has decided against running for a second term as Mayor this fall.  Johnson shared his decision in front of colleagues and supporters in a touching announcement on Wednesday.

At 71 years old, Johnston remains vibrant, passionate and healthy. He says that’s exactly why he and his wife Carolyn have decided now is the right time to start their next stage of life together.

Mayor Johnston listed a number of highlights and achievements he can look back on, including his help advocating for the redevelopment of Red Deer Regional Hospital, the growth of Red Deer Polytechnic, and positive moves in Economic Development.

All these lead of a feeling of ease about the decision to step away, though affordable housing and a permanent shelter for the homeless remain pressing concerns.

With about 8 months remaining in his term, Mayor Johnston is planning to push hard to move the needle on these housing issues.

“We’re looking forward to some more work and we’ll be going to the community shortly about it. So I still have optimism that maybe before the term is out we can have an announcement.”

This is the second major political announcement in Central Alberta in the last number of days.  Earlier this week Red Deer Mountain View MP Earl Dreeshen announced he won’t be running in the next federal election.

City Council approves first reading of updated Traffic Bylaw and General Penalty Bylaw

Red Deer City Council completed first reading of updated Traffic Bylaw (3707/2025) and General Penalties Bylaw (3036/A-2025) that will provide clarity and consistency in application of the bylaws as well as eliminate challenges in enforcement.

Key updates to the bylaws include:

1. Ticket Pre-Payment:
   • Removing the option to pay a parking ticket early to receive a reduced fee from the General Penalty Bylaw and adding it to the Traffic Bylaw.

2. School and Playground Zone Start Times:
   • Through investigating requests from schools to have school and playground zones start at 7 a.m., rather than 8 a.m., Administration determined that almost all school and playground zones in the city have students on the street prior to 7:30 a.m. To be consistent across the city, the start time is being moved to 7 a.m. providing an added measure of safety for all students.

3. Salt on Sidewalks:
   • Removing the provision prohibiting the use of salt on sidewalks as this provision was rarely reported and it is difficult and costly to enforce.

4. Permits:
   • More structure was added to the bylaw to clearly articulate conditions and requirements of Use of Streets Permits, as well as Excavation Permits and Alignment Permits.
   • Lastly, fees for closures impacting on-street and off-street stalls have been adjusted to reflect the actual revenue in each parking zone rather than the flat fee.

5. Penalties:
   • Penalties have been reviewed and updated.
   • During the last bylaw adoption, the penalty associated with vehicles being towed due to snow or street sweeping operations was inadvertently missed. This penalty has been added back in at a slightly higher amount due to an increase in the cost to tow a vehicle through The City’s contractor. This prevents the costs associated with towing vehicles during these operations from being subsidized by the tax base.

“These updates streamline the bylaws to create clarity for residents and administration,” said Erin Stuart, Inspections and Licensing Manager with The City. “They also help to eliminate regulations that are challenging to enforce and bring penalties in line with other City Bylaws.”

Second reading of both bylaws is anticipated for January 27, 2025.