| City council renewed its funding pledge to the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra on February 3, after two aldermen urged council to reconsider it.
Ald. Ric McIvor and Diane Colley-Urquhart were defeated in a motion designed to follow the lead of the provincial government and have the orchestra pay back the $250,000 emergency grant promised by council late last year as part of the orchestra’s bankruptcy refinancing plan.
The city’s grant was conditional on both the federal and provincial governments equalling their contribution. The province subsequently matched the grant, but stipulated that it will be paid back over the next five years through reductions in its annual operating grants to the orchestra.
McIvor and Colley-Urquhart wanted a similar arrangment, but the rest of council voted against their motion. As a result, city council’s grant will not have to be paid back by the orchestra.
Craig Chandler, the president of the Calgary-based right-wing lobby group Progressive Group for Independent Business, has announced his candidacy for the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada.
Chandler implemented a failed unite-the-right campaign during the last federal election to bring together Tories and Canadian Alliance members.
He is also known for a bizarre spat during the last municipal election with now-Mayor Dave Bronconnier. Chandler lobbied against Bronconnier and said he received a threatening phone call that was traced to a phone owned by Bronconnier’s mother.
In the race to replace current Tory leader Joe Clark, Chandler joins Nova Scotia MP Peter McKay, Calgary lawyer Jim Prentice, David Orchard, the runner-up to Clark in 1998, and MP Scott Brison.
The provincial government has launched a campaign designed to promote healthy lifestyles among Albertans, something opposition politicians say is a waste of taxpayer money.
The campaign, which includes a Web site (www.Healthy-Alberta.com), stems from the Mazankowski report on the future of health care in Alberta, which was heavy on preventative health measures.
Alberta Liberals, however, say the campaign is a half-hearted attempt by the province to save face after failing to implement more substantial recommendations for health reform. They say the government should undertake real health-improving initiatives, like combating poverty.
A Calgary alderman is pushing the provincial government to immediately conduct repairs to Deerfoot Trail.
Ald. John Schmal says Deerfoot Trail is in such a state of disrepair that is has become a "disaster." The major thoroughfare falls under provincial jurisdiction and Schmal is pushing the province to undertake some long-planned maintenance improvements to the road as soon as possible.
City council has set up a review process for its top bureaucrat after a development debacle that has called the operation of city administration into question.
Council agreed to the review process of chief executive officer Dale Stanway as part of a restructuring plan to keep better tabs on top city executives. A major project to develop the East Village fell apart last year and several top bureaucrats lost their jobs in the process. |
