For all Calgarians, last week was a big win that also shone a light on the kind of dysfunction that I will work to fix if elected on October 20th. The team that quarterbacked this victory was my Ward 4 community of Winston Heights-Mountview.
Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC) announced that it has rejected a controversial high-voltage transmission line — with towers up to 10 storeys tall — that Enmax wanted to run down a Winston Heights residential street and through Munro Park, our area's largest park. The Winston Heights-Mountview Community Association and the over 1,000 residents who signed our petition quickly coalesced to launch a community response to stop this unsightly incursion into a cherished part of our neighbourhood. I'm proud to have been deeply involved in my community's campaign, including presenting evidence at the AUC hearings in June.
Why is this a win for all Calgarians?
When my neighbours and local business owners took on Enmax, we did so after learning that our sitting Ward 4 Councillor and City Hall would neither listen to our concerns nor support us in our fight against Enmax's proposal. Last year, City Hall secretly adopted a policy that forbade City employees or elected officials from speaking at AUC hearings involving Enmax (Enmax is wholly owned by The City). This policy is wrong-headed, and it resulted in Winston Heights residents being marooned at the moment we needed the support of our Ward 4 Councillor and his colleagues at City Hall.
Nonetheless, the upsurge of community voices (involving hundreds of hours of meetings, outreach, research, advocacy, canvassing and coordinating) convinced AUC that Enmax failed to meaningfully and personally consult residents and business owners whose interests would be significantly impacted by the enormous and unsightly transmission lines. AUC ruled the proposed utility line was not in the public interest. Enmax must now return to the drawing board, and it will have to ensure its engagement with Calgarians is more thorough than it was with me and my neighbours. Our victory shows all Calgarians that there's a secret policy that keeps City Hall from supporting citizens who need help when transmission towers as high as 10 stories are threatening to ruin local residential streets and property values.
The way residents and business owners quickly came together on this issue is what I talk about in my election campaign. Gathering different voices, listening and connecting residents and communities toward achieving shared goals is what I love doing. This Enmax episode is an example of the kind of bridge-building and conversing that is needed at City Hall. When I become Ward 4 Councillor, I will work with my elected colleagues (not only those from The Calgary Party) to bring this kind of productive dynamic to bear on the opportunities that await Ward 4 and the whole of Calgary.