Red Deer City Council held its regular meeting on November 12, 2024.
The following decisions were made.
Consent Agenda:
Community Revitalization Levy (postponement)
- City Council postponed consideration of the Community Revitalization Levy (CRL), to come back before the end of the year. This item relates to exploring the impact of creating a CRL which would include Railyards, Capstone and historic downtown.
Riverside Meadows ARP Bylaw 326/A-2024/ Rezoning Bylaw 3357/TT-2024 (First Reading)
- City Council passed first reading of a bylaw amendment to change the zoning of a residential parcel from low density to medium density to facilitate redevelopment of the site.
Zoning Bylaw Amendment to Support Addiction Recovery and Homelessness (First Reading)
Notice of Motion:
Notice of Motion submitted by Councillor Bruce Buruma Re: Adding two Citizen Representatives to the City of Red Deer Audit Committee
Administration will bring forward an update to the Committees Bylaw, adding two Citizen representatives to the existing composition of Audit Committee; effective Q1 of 2025 or earlier, following a Notice of Motion submitted by Councillor Bruce Buruma.
Reports:
Downtown Governance
- City Council authorized administration, in partnership with the Downtown Business Association (DBA), to explore a shift in service delivery that better enables all community partners to proactively address the unique needs and challenges facing the greater downtown area.
- A report with recommendations will come back to City Council in the third quarter of 2025. The content of this report will be informed, in part, by recommendations from an established working committee comprised of greater downtown stakeholders. Community engagement will be part of this work.
- This report may inform The City and DBA’s 2026 budget, and/or proposed bylaw changes.
- Exploring the current Business Improvement Area (BIA) levy will be part of this report.
- The current BIA levy is collected to support BIA initiatives and projects. While The City of Red Deer collects these funds and disburses them to the DBA, City Council’s direction today focuses on exploring governance model options and new ways and opportunities to support the evolving needs of Red Deer’s downtown.
Amended Utility Budget
- City Council approved the Utilities Department 2025 amended operating and capital budget, along with the Utilities Department 2026-2028 amended operating plan and the Utilities 2026-2035 capital plan.
- On October 1, 2024, Council approved the 2025 Utilities budget and passed a resolution directing administration to increase the Municipal Consent and Access Fee (MCAF) to 15 per cent each for Electric, Water, and Wastewater. Based on this increase, administration has amended the Utilities budget.
Development Permit Consideration – Health and Medical Services
City Council also approved its meeting dates for 2025 and board appointments to the Red Deer Regional Airport Authority Board and Ad Hoc Economic Development Committee.
Bylaws:
Emergency Services Tank Registry Bylaw Amendment
- City Council passed three readings of the Emergency Services Bylaw 3586/2017 Amendment, removing the requirement for storage tank registrations. The amendment is in response to a change to the National Fire Code - 2023 Alberta Edition eliminating the need for storage tank Registrations.
Utility Rate Bylaw
- City Council passed three readings of the Utility Rate Bylaw, with the following rate changes:
- Water: Increase by 6 per cent
- Wastewater: Increase by 6 per cent
- Waste management:
- Waste management facility: Increase by 2 per cent
- Collection: Increase by 5 per cent
- The Bylaw rates also reflect Council's resolution to increase Municipal Consent and Access Fee (MCAF) for Water and Wastewater. MCAF will remain at 2024 levels for Waste Management.
- Fee changes will take effect for City of Red Deer customers on January 1, 2025; fee changes for regional customers will take effect on March 1, 2025, to align with various commission agreements.
Electric Utility Rate Bylaw
- City Council passed three readings of the Electric Utility Bylaw 3273/B-2024. This allows the Utilities department to provide the billing services contractor with sufficient notice to modify rate calculations and ensure new rates, based on Council’s approved budget changes, are in effect on January 1, 2025.
- The Electric Utility’s Operating and Capital budgets approved by Council result in an average Distribution Tariff rate increase of 6.5 per cent. The Distribution Tariff includes the Transmission System component, the Distribution System component, the Balancing Pool Allocation, and the Local Access Fee.
With approval of the Utility Rate Bylaw and Electric Utility Rate Bylaw, an average household will see an average total monthly increase of $15.32. These changes will take effect starting January 1, 2025.
Public Hearings:
Zoning Bylaw Amendment 3357/UU-2024 Red Tape Reduction Bylaw Educational Institutions
- A public hearing was held for a Zoning Bylaw Amendment to provide the community with increased flexibility in the implementation of the Zoning Bylaw and help external applicants with immediate development needs.
- Specifically, the amendment adds primary and secondary educational institutions as a discretionary use to several commercial zones to provide increased opportunities for educational institutions to exist in compatible districts.
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