The final tab isn’t in yet, but a report from the City of Calgary says the public hearings on upzoning in April and May cost Calgarians $1.275 million, with more to come. Line-by-line, the costs include $945,000 to prepare for the public hearing (over and above employees’ salaries); $330,000 for the hearing itself; $590,000 for mailouts to Calgary households; $396,000 to cover overtime salaries and wages for administration staff both before and during the hearing and; $56,000 for meetings and meals. But wait, there’s more, $5 million more, that city administration is estimating will cost to implement the 12 amendments that were added to the original land use bylaw. So, make that $6,275,000. But what price democracy, wonders Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek. The blanket zoning public hearing was the longest in Calgary’s history, as well as the largest in terms of participation. According to the city’s count, 736 Calgarians spoke on the issue, either in council or on the phone. Of those, 51 were neutral about the issue, 227 were in support of the bylaw, while 458 were opposed. Additionally, the city received 6,101 written submissions, including 4,347 before the hearing began, according to Coun. Dan McLean adding, “90% of those were opposed. We heard if blanket rezoning passes, housing prices will come down, everyone will get an affordable home, rents will be cheaper, but we know that’s not true,” he said in a council meeting during the hearing. The city said 50,000 people watched the proceedings on the city’s webcast. In a democracy, the majority vote rules, but the fact the vast majority of Calgarians were not in favour of blanket zoning, didn’t matter. The bylaw was passed by a 9 to 6 vote. Regarding the cost of the hearing, Coun. Sonya Sharp said the whole issue could have been settled at a lower cost by invoking democracy. "(It's) a lot of money considering a plebiscite to add that to an election, I think it's $50,000," she said in a media scrum. Council gave consideration to a plebiscite, which would have been held in October 2025, but settled instead on the public hearing. The question is why not wait? Money, perhaps? The Federal Liberal’s Housing Minister, Sean Fraser said, in a letter to Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek, if blanket zoning wasn’t adopted the city would not receive $228 million from the federal housing accelerator fund....no wait, that’s wrong.....it’s not money from a fund, it’s taxpayers’ money. After the bylaw passed on May 14, Gondek said, “Before the public hearing began, it was clear that housing is the top issue on Calgarians' minds and is truly the problem of our time." "The stories Calgarians shared over the past few weeks painted a stark picture of the housing challenges being faced in this city. Council's decision confirms our commitment to meet that problem with the tools and plan we have.” About $228 million worth of tools. After the report detailing the cost of the hearing was released, Gondek told reporters, with no apparent irony, “You can’t put a price on democracy.” “We enabled, encouraged and allowed Calgarians to come forward and share their thoughts with us. They were able to express concerns that they had. They were able to talk about their experiences. And you can't ask for a better environment for council to make a decision." You allowed Calgarians to express their opinions on the phone, in written submissions and in the Municipal Building? Allowed them? Let them eat cake! And that price you said can’t be put on democracy? Apparently, a price can be put on ignoring democracy – it's $6,275,000, which would have built a lot of affordable housing.
The final tab isn’t in yet, but a report from the City of Calgary says the public hearings on upzoning in April and May cost Calgarians $1.275 million, with more to come. Line-by-line, the costs include $945,000 to prepare for the public hearing (over and above employees’ salaries); $330,000 for the hearing itself; $590,000 for mailouts to Calgary households; $396,000 to cover overtime salaries and wages for administration staff both before and during the hearing and; $56,000 for meetings and meals. But wait, there’s more, $5 million more, that city administration is estimating will cost to implement the 12 amendments that were added to the original land use bylaw. So, make that $6,275,000. But what price democracy, wonders Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek. The blanket zoning public hearing was the longest in Calgary’s history, as well as the largest in terms of participation. According to the city’s count, 736 Calgarians spoke on the issue, either in council or on the phone. Of those, 51 were neutral about the issue, 227 were in support of the bylaw, while 458 were opposed. Additionally, the city received 6,101 written submissions, including 4,347 before the hearing began, according to Coun. Dan McLean adding, “90% of those were opposed. We heard if blanket rezoning passes, housing prices will come down, everyone will get an affordable home, rents will be cheaper, but we know that’s not true,” he said in a council meeting during the hearing. The city said 50,000 people watched the proceedings on the city’s webcast. In a democracy, the majority vote rules, but the fact the vast majority of Calgarians were not in favour of blanket zoning, didn’t matter. The bylaw was passed by a 9 to 6 vote. Regarding the cost of the hearing, Coun. Sonya Sharp said the whole issue could have been settled at a lower cost by invoking democracy. "(It's) a lot of money considering a plebiscite to add that to an election, I think it's $50,000," she said in a media scrum. Council gave consideration to a plebiscite, which would have been held in October 2025, but settled instead on the public hearing. The question is why not wait? Money, perhaps? The Federal Liberal’s Housing Minister, Sean Fraser said, in a letter to Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek, if blanket zoning wasn’t adopted the city would not receive $228 million from the federal housing accelerator fund....no wait, that’s wrong.....it’s not money from a fund, it’s taxpayers’ money. After the bylaw passed on May 14, Gondek said, “Before the public hearing began, it was clear that housing is the top issue on Calgarians' minds and is truly the problem of our time." "The stories Calgarians shared over the past few weeks painted a stark picture of the housing challenges being faced in this city. Council's decision confirms our commitment to meet that problem with the tools and plan we have.” About $228 million worth of tools. After the report detailing the cost of the hearing was released, Gondek told reporters, with no apparent irony, “You can’t put a price on democracy.” “We enabled, encouraged and allowed Calgarians to come forward and share their thoughts with us. They were able to express concerns that they had. They were able to talk about their experiences. And you can't ask for a better environment for council to make a decision." You allowed Calgarians to express their opinions on the phone, in written submissions and in the Municipal Building? Allowed them? Let them eat cake! And that price you said can’t be put on democracy? Apparently, a price can be put on ignoring democracy – it's $6,275,000, which would have built a lot of affordable housing.
