Sherwood Park Minute: Issue 58

Sherwood Park Minute - Your weekly one-minute summary of Sherwood Park politics

📅 This Week In Sherwood Park: 📅

• On Tuesday, at 9:00 am, there will be a meeting of the Priorities Committee. On the agenda is a Housing Affordability Strategy update which outlines key progress made in its first year and sets priorities for the year ahead. Since its adoption in April 2024, the County has amended its Land Use Bylaw to expand opportunities for secondary and garden suites, modernize housing-related definitions, and create a new mixed-use neighbourhood zone. Financial policies were also updated to support non-profit affordable housing projects. The County completed housing needs assessments at the regional, provincial and federal levels, and launched a major Housing Stability Survey in late 2024, which found rising housing instability and homelessness. Year 2 priorities include tracking housing indicators, exploring a regional service model, and easing parking requirements for affordable developments.
  
  
• The Priorities Committee is also considering amendments to the Municipal Development Plan and Land Use Bylaw to support rural economic diversification and better align with its tourism and agriculture strategies. The changes aim to expand opportunities for on-farm processing, agritourism, and value-added agriculture while reducing regulatory barriers. New provisions also propose limiting large-scale RV storage in agricultural zones, requiring rezoning for all new rural event venues and campgrounds, and ensuring rural business and destination uses are located on previously disturbed or marginal lands. These updates were informed by stakeholder feedback and will proceed to a public hearing later this year.
  
  
• An update on the success of evening and weekend On-Demand Transit will be provided to the Priorities Committee. The program has seen increased ridership in 2024 compared to 2019. While service standards are being met in most areas, trip denials have been an issue due to growing demand and high pre-booking cancellations. To address this, a proposal includes eliminating pre-booking starting June 2nd and increasing service hours during peak times to reduce no-shows and trip denials. The existing budget will be used to fund these changes, and communication efforts will begin immediately, including in-app notifications and other promotional materials.
  
  
• Administration will provide the Priorities Committee with information about how County Connect will be modernized. Strathcona County plans to replace its current service request system, Verint, with Microsoft Dynamics by the end of 2025. The new platform will apparently improve user experience through better design, enhanced features like registered accounts and personalized notifications, and a more consistent service delivery. Public engagement, including feedback from groups like the Seniors Advisory Group, has been integral in shaping the transition, with a focus on accessibility and usability. The project aims to streamline operations, reduce the need for multiple logins, and introduce AI-driven features for quicker responses and improved service. A major step was completed in October 2024, tracking incoming Council Requests using Microsoft Dynamics.
  
  
• Paul Steinhubl, the inventor of Alberta's rural addressing system, will celebrate his 90th birthday on May 11, 2025. In 1979, he developed the Township and Range Road system to address the challenge of locating rural homes in Strathcona County, where growing populations were making traditional addressing methods inefficient. The system, inspired by the Dominion Land Survey, assigns numbers to Township and Range Roads, making it easier for services like Canada Post and emergency responders to locate rural addresses. Initially rejected by Saskatchewan, Steinhubl's idea was adopted in Strathcona County in 1981 and later expanded across Alberta. Now retired and living in Fort Saskatchewan, Steinhubl reflects on his impact, humorously noting that "I have a monument at every intersection."
  
  
• Garnett Genuis has secured a fourth term as the Conservative MP for Sherwood Park–Fort Saskatchewan, winning with 65.1% of the vote - an increase over his 2021 result. Liberal candidate Tanya Holm finished second with 26.9%, more than doubling her party’s local support. The NDP dropped sharply to just 5%. Voter turnout in the riding was 78.6%, the second-highest in the country. Nationally, the Liberals earned a fourth term under Mark Carney.

🚨 This Week’s Action Item: 🚨

The federal election may have just wrapped up, but we can’t forget that the municipal election is fast approaching this October. 

At Common Sense Sherwood Park, we’re committed to driving real change in the County, and we need your support to make it happen. If you care about priorities like increasing transparency, protecting the freedom of residents and businesses, and bringing common sense back to local government, now is the time to get involved. 

Volunteer with us today and help ensure a better future for Sherwood Park:

🪙 This Week’s Sponsor: 🪙

This week's sponsor is you! We don't have big corporate backers, so if you like what you're reading, please consider making a donation or signing up as a monthly member.

Having said that, if you are a local business and are interested in being a sponsor, send us an email and we'll talk!