Airdrie Minute: Issue 61

Airdrie Minute - Your weekly one-minute summary of Airdrie politics

📅 This Week In Airdrie: 📅

• On Tuesday, at 9:00 am, there will be a meeting of the Community and Corporate Services Committee. The Committee will review a new Meeting Room and Event Space Rental Allocation Policy. The policy aims to ensure fairness, consistency, and transparency in how municipal indoor and outdoor gathering spaces are allocated. Currently, no formal policy governs how these spaces - such as meeting rooms, green spaces, and fire pits - are booked, leading to user frustrations, especially at the Town and Country Centre. The proposed policy sets a clear priority order: municipal events first, followed by historical bookings, regular recurring users, and then one-time bookings. User groups were consulted in early 2025 and responded positively, saying the policy offers clarity and predictability. As Inspire, a new facility, prepares to open in fall 2025, the policy is intended to proactively manage increasing demand.
  
  
• The Committee will also review Site Master Plan options for the future Southwest Recreation Centre. The report outlines three design options for the site, all based on public feedback and previous studies. The centre will be built in three phases and include a pool, fitness spaces, arenas, a gymnasium, and supporting spaces. The recommended option, called the Courtyard Concept, was chosen because it best reflects community input. It includes a central outdoor gathering space, good access to parking, and a strong street presence. It also separates each phase well, so parts of the facility can be used independently. Option 2 focuses on internal efficiency and adds more green space near homes. However, each phase would need additional development to be fully functional on its own. Option 3, called Event Avenue, is designed for large events and could bring in more visitors and business, but it doesn’t meet community priorities - especially the need for more public ice time - and may not fit well with nearby residential areas.
  
  
• Finally, the Committee will discuss a Community Commemoration and Monuments Policy. Currently, the city lacks a clear policy to manage monuments, plaques, and memorials, resulting in inconsistent decisions. The proposed policy aims to create a fair, transparent process for approving, installing, maintaining, and removing commemorative items on City property, ensuring they align with Airdrie’s heritage and culture. Research of similar policies in other Canadian municipalities highlighted best practices, such as requiring donors to cover costs and ensuring commemorations reflect the community’s identity. The policy distinguishes commemorative items from other memorials or public art and clarifies responsibilities for temporary memorials.
  
  
• Also on Tuesday, at 1:00 pm, the Community Infrastructure and Strategic Growth Standing Committee will meet. The Committee will also be looking at an updated Memorial Policy. (Though this one is different than the aforementioned Community Commemoration and Monuments Policy). This Memorial Policy would replace the existing 2017 version, expanding how the City manages commemorations on public property. The new policy introduces a Companion Animal Memorial Program, allowing residents to honour their pets, with a designated area established at the Kings Heights Off-leash Dog Park where people can leave meaningful items like collars and leashes. It also provides clear guidance on temporary and roadside memorials, which are currently not permitted but will now be managed with defined rules regarding their placement, removal, and storage.
  
  
• The City of Airdrie is relaunching its Downtown Incentives Program to support further revitalization of the city’s core. Council approved the move after seeing strong results from last year’s program, which backed 21 projects and helped spur $1.52 million in local reinvestment. Mayor Peter Brown praised the effort for helping create a downtown where residents want to gather, shop, and connect. Improvements from the program have already shortened application timelines and guided the redevelopment of underused sites. Funding from the Community Revitalization Levy is also playing a key role, with more than $500,000 projected for reinvestment in 2025. City staff say renewed business interest and popular events like Ribfest show that public enthusiasm is growing. Applications for this year’s program will open in early June.
  
  
• The City has purchased a building at 2 East Lake Way to support a new municipal animal care model. The facility will include a City-run pound and a shelter operated by a contracted non-profit. Dog intake is expected to begin by mid-2025, with cat services and full operations starting in mid-2026. The new approach follows the City’s decision not to renew its contract with Alberta Pound and Rescue Centre, which ended in March. City officials say this hybrid model will provide stability and allow for long-term planning. In the meantime, stray dogs will be housed at a local, non-public-facing facility. Stray cats can be brought to the Tails to Tell Animal Shelter in Crossfield. The City plans to invite qualified non-profits to submit proposals for managing the new shelter.
   

🚨 This Week’s Action Item: 🚨

Join the Common Sense Airdrie Facebook group to stay informed about what’s really happening at City Hall and connect with others who want to bring transparency, accountability, and common sense back to local government. 

Be part of the conversation, share your ideas, and help shape the future of our city.

🪙 This Week’s Sponsor: 🪙

This week's sponsor is you! We don't have big corporate backers, so if you like what you're reading, please consider making a donation or signing up as a monthly member.

Having said that, if you are a local business and are interested in being a sponsor, send us an email and we'll talk!