Sherwood Park Minute: Public Hearings, Coaching Award, and a Tax Increase Proposed

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 City Council. The meeting will begin with a closed (secret) session, wherein Council will discuss Annual Traffic and Pedestrian Safety Improvements, an Alberta Industrial Heartland Association Update, and a Pioneer Housing Foundation Update on Fir Street Property. Once the meeting opens up to the public, a Notice of Motion will be brought forward by Councillor Anderson calling for Administration to provide information on the amount of severance/termination pay paid out over the past five years. There will also be a Public Hearing regarding garden suites as well as secondary suites within townhouses.
  
  
• On Wednesday, at 9:00 am, (and again on Thursday if required), Council will meet for budget deliberations. A 3.87% tax increase has been proposed. We think this is unacceptable. Council should be cutting taxes, not raising them, and they could absolutely afford to do so if they got wasteful spending under control.
  
  
• On Thursday, at 5:00 pm, there will be a Public Hearing regarding the budget. The hearing will take place in Council Chambers. Should you wish to address Council directly, you can fill out the “Request to Speak” form online.

Last Week In Sherwood Park:

• Letter carriers picketed outside the Cranford Way post office as Canada Post employees, represented by the Canadian Union of Postal Workers, have launched a nationwide strike. The strike involves 55,000 workers and comes after a year of failed negotiations for a new collective agreement. The strike could leave Canadians without postal services during the holiday season, with the federal government under pressure to mediate as Parliament remains in gridlock. The City reminded people to get in touch by phone, rather than mail.
  
  
• Sherwood Park-Fort Saskatchewan MP Garnett Genuis hosted a discussion with Harry Ho-jen Tseng, Taiwan's representative to Canada, addressing global challenges, trade opportunities, and foreign interference. Tseng highlighted Taiwan's resilience against cyber-attacks and disinformation, noting that the island faces over a million cyber-attacks daily, often thwarted by advanced defenses and rapid responses. He emphasized the pervasive threat of disinformation, particularly during elections, and Taiwan's efforts to educate its citizens on verifying information. Genuis praised Taiwan’s approach to combating misinformation while upholding freedom of speech.
  
  
• Mayor Rod Frank congratulated Montreal Alouettes head coach Jason Maas (a Sherwood Park local) after he was named CFL Coach of the Year. Maas led the Alouettes to a league-best 12-5-1 record and their first East Division title since 2012. Under his guidance, Montreal achieved its best regular-season performance since 2010 and captured the Grey Cup in his debut season as head coach. The award was decided by a vote from the Football Reporters of Canada and CFL head coaches.