Your council went private and what that means for you
Your Edmonton City Council held a special meeting recently, and one of the more interesting items involved the decision to move behind closed doors. On April 30, Council voted unanimously, 13 to 0, to meet in private to discuss a City Manager Update. Councillors Knack, Paquette, Salvador, Stevenson, Rutherford, Wright, Principe, Tang, Janz, Clarke, Parmar, Elliott, and Morgan all voted yes.
This move was justified under sections 20 and 29 of the *Access to Information Act*, which pertain to discussions harmful to personal privacy and advice from officials. Later in the meeting, a motion by Councillor Tang to meet in public was carried, also with unanimous consent. So, they did eventually come back into the light. It's a bit like watching the Oilers – sometimes you need a closed-door meeting to figure out the power play, but eventually, you have to get back on the ice.
Speaking of getting out and about, some councillors have been hitting the road for professional development. Councillor Clarke and Councillor Elliott both expensed accommodation for the 2025 Alberta Municipalities Convention in Calgary, costing $825.88 each. Councillor Clarke also spent $685.00 on registration, while Councillor Elliott's food and incidentals tallied $348.00. Honestly though, these conventions are important for keeping up with what other municipalities are doing. It's not all sunshine and daisies down south, you know.
* April 30: Council met privately on a City Manager Update. * April 30: Council then moved back to a public session. * Councillors Clarke and Elliott expensed trips to the 2025 Alberta Municipalities Convention.
What does this mean for you, the person who actually pays the taxes? Well, privacy clauses aside, these are the mechanisms by which your city is run. Knowing who's where, doing what, and how much it costs, keeps the whole thing transparent. Edmonton doesn't need your approval. Never did.
Darren Fedoruk, @deepnorth_yeg
You can get a deeper dive into all this over on the morning show with the crew. Tune in live at mornings.live.