Letter regarding cuts to CBC Calgary

This morning, Mayor Naheed Nenshi sent an email to the president and CEO of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Hubert Lacroix, expressing his concerns about recent cuts to CBC Calgary. Below is the content of that letter:

April 1, 2015 

Dear M. Lacroix, 

I was sorry to hear of the recent cuts to CBC. I recognize this was a very difficult choice for you to make. However, I am confused by the decision to cut positions so dramatically in Calgary and across Western Canada. I am writing this letter to urge you to reconsider. 

As you well know, CBC Calgary, which I understand is one of the network’s most successful stations, will be losing nearly 25 per cent of its staff as a result of this restructuring. It is my understanding that a loss of 20 positions in Calgary would put its staff size on par with that of CBC Newfoundland and Labrador. For a news station serving a population of roughly 2 million people to have as many staff as a station serving less than 600,000 people does not make sense to me. 

I read a recent blog of yours which stated: “We will be more local, at less cost. And that’s crucial. Regions have been and remain an essential priority. If we want to truly serve Canadian communities, we need to do it in a way that is sustainable over the long-term.” I don’t understand how a 25 per cent reduction in staff in one market will improve the coverage of local stories.

As the public broadcaster, CBC/Radio-Canada should deliver content that reflects Canada and its regions. These cuts are a breach of CBC’s mandate and will very seriously limit the ability of CBC Calgary to tell the stories of Albertans, which it has done so well for so many years. I strongly believe that CBC Calgary losing one-quarter of its staff, including several journalists, will impact CBC/Radio-Canada’s ability to accurately and equitably tell Canada’s story. 

As a politician, I may not always like the stories being told, but I respect the coverage and recognize the critical role media plays in accountability, as well as community building. I fear those important stories of the city and people I represent will no longer be told, or told well.

I know you face an incredibly difficult financial situation. However, I implore you to reconsider redistributing the cuts evenly across Canada rather than targeting one area of the country.

Sincerely,
Naheed K. Nenshi
MAYOR 

Cc: Rémi Racine, Chair of CBC/Radio-Canada Board of Directors
Hon. Shelly Glover, Minister of Canadian Heritage and Official Languages
Hon. James Moore, Minister of Industry
Calgary Members of Parliament

Council News in Brief - March 30, 2015

Council News in Brief - Pilot

Regular Meeting of Council

March 30, 2015

City of Calgary’s Longest-Serving Employee Retires (verbal)

Council recognized George Dorn and his 50-year career with The City.

Calgary Airport Authority Annual Report (verbal)

Council received The Calgary Airport Authority’s annual report presentation.

Improving Municipal Oversight of PayDay Loan Businesses (item 6.4)

Council ammended and approved recommendations to increase municipal oversight of PayDay Loan Businesses. The plan involves developing  provisions to limit the proliferation of PayDay Loan Businesses and assembling a task force to work with the provincial and federal governments on PayDay Loan Business practices in order to protect financially vulnerable people. Administration will bring forward related Land Use Bylaw and Business License Bylaw updates along with the terms of reference for the task force later this year.

Secondary Suites – Working Group (item 6.5)

Council approved recommendations brought forward by a secondary suites working group including the endorsement of a Suite Safety Campaign. The Campaign entails an 18 month effort to convert as many existing illegal suites to legal, safe suites in areas where they are already a permitted land use.  It will focus on the safety of existing suites, provide clarification on safety code compliance and will streamline suite approval process. The campaign includes the promotion of an easily identifiable brand (sticker) for code-compliant suites and the creation of a suites registry to more easily track and monitor performance.

Livery System Enhancements Update (item 8.1.1)

Council approved the release of 7 accessible taxi plate licenses but decided to delay the release of further plates until the impact of current economic conditions on the taxi market can be further evaluated. Administration will report back in Q3 2015 with its findings.

Eamon's Building Utilization Supplemental Report - Deferral (item 8.1.3)

Council approved Administration’s recommendation to place the Eamon’s building for sale with no requirement to return it to the original site. The building will continue to be stored until September 30^th, 2015.

Pedestrian Strategy Update Report (item 8.3.1)

Council received a status update on the Pedestrian Strategy and directed Administration to report back through the Standing Policy Committee (SPC) on Transportation and Transit with the finalized strategy in October 2015.

Carshare Parking Policy (item 8.3.2)

Council approved amendments to the Parking Policy Framework for Calgary including the addition of a new Carshare Parking Policies section. The amendments provide direction to The City and the Calgary Parking Authority (CPA) on how to use parking management to support carshare services in Calgary. Administration will report back to the SPC on Transportation & Transit no later than September 2016 with an update report on the policy’s implementation.

Budget Savings Account Proposal (item 8.4.1)

Council approved the Budget Savings Account Proposal in response to Council’s request to encourage and provide incentives for City business units to seek annual savings, innovation and efficiences within their operating and capital budgets. The creation and implementation of a Budget Savings Account will be monitored and reported quarterly. 

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Council News in Brief is an informal summary of highlights from Calgary City Council’s meetings. The City Clerk provides the complete and formal documentation of Council’s meetings.

Mayor Nenshi Reads: The HOME Team Calgary Flames

Since we're in the middle of a playoff run with the most exciting Calgary Flames team in years, it only seems fitting to do a new, Flames-themed Mayor Nenshi Reads. The HOME Team Calgary Flames is a new book written and illustrated by Calgarians Holly Preston and Val Lawton.

Enjoy and... Go Flames Go!

Media scrums: March 30, 2015

During Council breaks on March 30, Mayor Nenshi answered media questions on a variety of topics. The above video covers the following topics:

• The Calgary International Airport Authority's annual report
• Ongoing complaints of airport noise
• The potential release of transit of new taxi plates
• The future of the historic Eamon's building

Below is a follow-up scrum with media that addressed:

• The decision to seek new opportunities for the historic Eamon's building
• The decision to release new taxi plates (including the data-driven decision-making process for taxi regulation)

Mayor Nenshi's statement on the provincial budget

Today, the Government of Alberta released its 2015 budget. Below is a statement from Mayor Naheed Nenshi about how this budget affects The City of Calgary and Calgarians.

For The City of Calgary, we will be able to manage the impact of this budget. We are pleased that the MSI grants have been maintained and will slightly increase this year, which will allow us to keep people working and building much-needed infrastructure. We will release details soon, but we believe that this allotment will allow us to continue and slightly accelerate major projects such as the Macleod/162nd interchange. 

We are also pleased with the increase of funding for the Calgary Public Library. However, the Province continues to freeze funding to Family and Community Support Services, and this is a downloading of social services on municipalities. The Province has been falling far short for years on this, and we continue to bear the brunt of providing services that are not our responsibility. 

One interesting element of this is that the increase in gas tax hits the city hard. I won't be able to fill my tank before midnight, but hopefully other city vehicles will! Because we fill so many tanks of gas, this four cent increase will cost the city about $2 million per year. 

We are also pleased with the commitment to continue building the SW ring road, and the cost of this road seems to have significantly decreased. We'll continue to work with the province to get this done.

I also remain concerned about the impact of the budget on all Calgarians. Cuts to health care, to post-secondary education, and increases in taxes have the potential of hurting the most vulnerable and we must be vigilant to make sure that we, as a community, support those at risk. For example, I am concerned about the impending closure of the Calgary Young Offender Centre, and I will be discussing the impact of these cuts with the Government of Alberta. 

I should also mention that this whole budgeting process, common to many governments in Canada, is strange. For The City of Calgary to wait until a speech is made and then quickly process all these budget documents is bizarre. The City's process, in which we release a draft budget to the public and discuss and debate and amend for weeks, just seems to be a smarter, more transparent way of doing this. 

- Mayor Naheed Nenshi

Mayor Nenshi on the Rick Mercer Report

In March, Rick Mercer visited Calgary to spend the morning with Mayor Nenshi. Not everything made it into the video clip--Rick and the mayor also spent time talking with the kids of City Hall School (St. Dominics!) and and getting a look at City Hall's historic clock tower. Here are some photos courtesy the Mercer Report.

Video: Poverty in Calgary--the problem, perspective, and opportunity

On March 5, 2015, Mayor Nenshi was a speaker at the 14th Soul of the City event hosted by Calgary Economic Development. The topic: poverty in Calgary. In this candid address, the mayor challenges stereotypes about poverty and addresses his own personal experience with poverty.

During his address, he challenged Calgarians to support the Enough for All strategy to end poverty in Calgary.

This is one speech not to be missed!