This is the official website for Gian-Carlo Carra, City Councillor for Ward 9 in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
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Two years ago my wife and I decided on Forest Lawn as the place to build our family. We were pregnant and looking to buy our first home together. Initially, I was skeptical of the location based on the reputation the community had, but the reality of the neighbourhood was significantly different than what I had expected.
I have found Forest Lawn to be one of the best neighbourhoods I have lived in here in Calgary, for many reasons. There are many great shops, local businesses, amazing food, and a diverse blend of cultures all coming together to make Forest Lawn feel like a small town in a big city.
The proximity to downtown is great and with the construction work underway on 17 Avenue and the vision for the corridor from the BRZ/International Ave and the City of Calgary, I found that there are only a few things that needed to change to make Forest Lawn live up to its potential.
One thing was that it needed to be physically cleaned up.
I had decided that I wanted to get involved in my community and I was able to get in touch with the Forest Lawn Community Association. I offered my services to help in anyway and I was informed about a community clean-up the FLCA was hosting. I offered to design the flyers, print and distribute them.
One of the aspects of the clean-up was that not all residents were able to move their garbage or recyclables to the location. We would need to find some volunteers to pick up the materials from any residents that required it. This made me think, if we had to pick up the garbage, we should just be dropping it at the landfill. If we were able to get access to the landfill, I could use that access to clean up the rest of the neighbourhood.
I eventually elaborated on the idea until it developed into a project. I plan and implement projects every day in my line of work and it only seemed natural to apply the same formula to this project. I set up the goals for the project, expected outcomes, and a plan of action to have it accomplished.
The first step was organizing a way to remove as much garbage as possible and where it would go. I contacted the City’s Waste and recycling division and sent the director my plan of action and asked for 3 days of access at no charge to remove the debris. I then tried to find a resource to fund the operation.
I received notification back from Waste and Recycling Services that they would be happy to be a part of the project. Although they weren’t sure about how they were going to go about structuring it as it was a new initiative.
Funding on the other hand was a much more difficult aspect as there wasn’t an operating body that would be able to fund the project, for one reason or another. (Starting in late 2018, anyone with an idea to help their community can apply for funding through the GFL Small Grants Committee).
Because we had the backing of Waste and Recycling Services, and the support of Councillor Gian-Carlo Carra and his team, I decided to fund the project.
The next difficult step was to find volunteers. I made the rounds through my friends and family and had confirmation from many of them for at least a few hours over the weekend and that was a good enough start.
I then approached several businesses, not-for-profits and social program directors in the neighbourhood. Many said they were unable to help or didn’t have the resources and made recommendations to other places or people. When I approached Foothills Landscaping, a long-time member of the Forest Lawn community, they volunteered. They offered the project two vehicles, if they could find volunteers to run them from within the company. The President of Foothills landscaping, George, and another great volunteer, Roy, stepped up and drove the trucks and helped pick up the waste scattered through the alleys.
I organized the teams so that we could have the maximum impact, giving each crew a set of laneways to clean-up. Because of our lack of resources, we really needed to be efficient in how we used them, so planning was a key element to achieving success.
The project was a huge success. By the end of the 3 days we had accomplished quite a lot and made a big impact on the aesthetics, safety and pride of the community.
21,840 Lbs of waste
23 Trips to the landfill
72.5 Hours of labour
$314.02 Operating expenses
$0.0144 – Cost per LBS
301.24 LBS per hour worked
Some of the most common things we came across were couches and mattresses, we also often had to clean up ripped open garbage bags or overturned black bins.
We did have to call the Calgary Fire Department to come out to two scenes while we were on the clean up. We had come across several needles in various locations and one particular area with roughly 50 needles that needed to be cleaned up. While it wasn’t nice coming across those, we were very happy to be able to remove them from the neighbourhood and create a safer space for everyone.
One of the best outcomes of this project, outside of the intended goals, was the communication with the community. They were so happy to see that someone was helping the community and cleaning up what everyone had seen as a major problem.
We were thanked by many of the residents and many of them had questions as to why we were doing it, and who we were hired by. I think that many of them were shocked that someone could just take it upon themselves to fix a problem.
If one lesson is learned from this, I hope it is that ever citizen, every individual has the power to make positive change. You don’t have to set up a whole program or clean up an entire community. You can volunteer a few hours at your local community association, pick up garbage as you walk down the street, cut your neighbours grass or shovel someone’s walkway. Everyone has the power to affect change in their community.
I would like to thank all of the 9 volunteers;
Perry, Chris, Dwayne, Pete, Allan, Steve, Roy, George and Bill.
I would also like to thank supporters of the project;
Mike Haines, Rick Valdarchi, and Je Fei Shi from Waste and Recycling Services. 12 Community Safety Initiative. BRZ / International Avenue. As well as Gian-Carlo Carra and his staff.
If you or someone you know would like to become active in your community, a great way to start is by joining your local Community Association.
William Carnegie
November 13, 2018 is Vote Day for the Olympics. Photo source: Lyle Aspinall/PostMedia Network
When: Wednesday, October 17, 2018
Time: 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Where: Hotel Blackfoot, 5940 Blackfoot Trail SE
The Open House will follow a similar format to the City’s Engage events. Everyone is free to move around at their leisure.
There will be city staff on hand to facilitate. They will answer questions and direct attendees to information boards which will have much of the material you can see on the online portal here: https://engage.calgary.ca/2026Games
The open houses are opportunities to provide hands-on feedback directly to staff. Usually there are forms with specific questions that attendees can complete and leave with staff. The five focus topics of the engagement are:
Community
Venues and facilities
Environment
Economy
Costs
All five are outlined in detail on the Engage portal in Step 2 (“Learn about the proposed bid”). The Engage Toolkit is a great resource as well.
Do you want more information to answers like:
Why is Calgary considering hosting the Games again?
What are some of the proposed Olympic and Paralympic numbers in the Draft Hosting Plan?
Will hosting the Games help or hinder Calgary’s future?
Then please have a look at the 2026 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games bid engagement toolkit.
Through to October 28, Calgarians have the opportunity to learn more about The City’s analysis of the Calgary 2026 Draft Hosting Plan Concept (see below).
In addition, the online engagement portal was launched today, giving citizens a chance to review materials and offer input at their convenience through to October 28.
2026 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games Bid Engagement and Public Events
The City of Calgary’s Secretariat was established to examine Calgary 2026’s Draft Hosting Plan Concept and provide advice to City Council and the Assessment Committee on opportunities, benefits, costs and risks associated with bidding and possibly hosting the Games. The Secretariat also ensures Council and the Assessment Committee have the information they need to make the decision on whether or not to bid.
The Secretariat has undertaken a thorough analysis of the draft hosting plan. It has worked with City of Calgary staff in all departments and external consultants with Games experience to determine and assess benefits and risks inherent in the draft hosting plan. It has also worked with other orders of government, the Canadian Olympic Committee and the Canadian Paralympic Committee.
There have been some external comments about how the information is being presented through the public engagement platform, specifically around categorizing potential benefits and risks associated with hosting the Games.
Should The City decide to submit a bid, and it is successful, the draft hosting plan would continue to evolve. The examples of benefits and risks listed in the engagement materials are provided to achieve a balanced approach. The examples are “potential” and not intended to be taken as exhaustive.
The City is engaging Calgarians to help City Council decide whether or not to submit a bid to host the 2026 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. City Council will consider a range of information before making its decision.
The question on the ballot will be:
Are you for or are you against Calgary hosting the 2026 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games?
__ I am for Calgary hosting
__ I am against Calgary hosting
November 6 and 7 – Advance Vote 11 a.m. – 7 p.m. (14 locations, one in each ward)
November 6 – Mount Royal University 11 a.m. - 5p.m.
November 7 – University of Calgary 11 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Senior’s Accommodation Vote (November 6 & 7) – list of residences will be added to the website shortly.
Applications are now open and can be made online, in person or over the phone until November 13, 2018 at noon.
Ballot packages must be received at the Elections Office by 4 pm on November 13, 2018.
If the mail strike occurs arrangements have been made to deliver the packages to Calgary addresses via courier.
Time: 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
160 locations across the City.
Voters must vote at their designated voting station.
Hospital Vote: 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. (rotating) Foothills, Peter Lougheed, Rockyview, South Health Campus
A Canadian citizen at least 18 years of age who has resided in Alberta for a least the last 6 months (since May 13, 2018) and lives in a Calgary Voting Subdivision on Vote Day.
For the first time, Elections Calgary will be using vote tabulators to compile the results. Voters will be provided a paper ballot and they will mark their choice on the ballot. The ballot will then be run through the tabulator, if there are no errors, the ballot is accepted into the ballot box. If the ballot has been marked improperly (e.g. too many choices) the ballot will be returned to the voter and the voter will be given an opportunity to correctly mark a ballot and have it accepted by the tabulator.
At the Voting Station, after the last voter leaves the station, the tabulator will generate results for the ballots received by it. Those results will be posted for scrutineers to read.
The results will be available on the Calgary.ca/vote2018 website and City social media channels. The legislation prevents the results being released voting station by voting station on Vote Day. When all results have been tabulated, which we are planning for at the latest 10 p.m., Elections Calgary will post on its social media channels that the results will be released in the next 15 minutes.
Public, Campaigns, and Media will all be encouraged to watch our Social Media Channels to ensure they are prepared.
For more information, visit www.calgary.ca/vote2018 or call 311.
Rendering of the 17 Avenue and 36 Street SE Station. Source: City of Calgary
Written by the BRT Project Team
Published on September 28, 2018
Crews are busy at work on International Avenue, and there are some detours and closures this weekend.
September 29 to October 1, 2018 – 17 Avenue and 19 Street SE
Starting at 7 a.m. September 29, 2018 westbound 17 Avenue S.E. will be reduced to one lane at 19 Street S.E.
The westbound left turn lane on 17 Avenue S.E. to 19 Street S.E. will also be closed.
Eastbound 17 Avenue S.E. will be reduced to one lane east of the 19 Street S.E. intersection.
October 4, 2018 – 17 Avenue and 19 Street SE
Traffic lanes on 19 Street S.E. will be shifted and the pedestrian crosswalk on the east side of 19 Street will be opened. This work is weather dependant.
October 5 to 9, 2018 - 17 Avenue and 19 Street SE
Starting at 7 a.m. September 29, 2018 westbound 17 Avenue S.E. to 19 Street S.E. will be reduced to one lane at 19 Street S.E.
The westbound left turn lane on 17 Avenue S.E. will also be closed.
Eastbound 17 Avenue S.E. will be reduced to one lane east of the 19 Street S.E. intersection.
Source: The City of Calgary
Don’t forget your favourite businesses on International Avenue are open during construction, so make sure to stop by.
Stay in touch with the BRT Project Team and get all updates by visiting www.calgary.ca/17AveSEBRT.
While the City of Calgary is an interested group in these discussions, the ultimate decision lies with the provincial government.
I want to give you a heads up that some of you in certain areas in your community will be receiving a mail out from HIV Community Link, the organization contracted by Alberta Health Services to provide advisory support to the development of supervised consumption services in Calgary, on behalf of the Province.
The card states that a supervised consumption site is coming to your community. This is not actually the case – one site is proposed for the east end of downtown while the other is proposed along 17 Avenue SE.
As part of their communications plan, HIV Community Link is mailing out postcards to postal codes whose boundaries intersect within a 1 km radius of the proposed location in the east end of downtown, and 2 km radius of the 17 Avenue SE proposed location.
While the City of Calgary is an interested group in these discussions, the ultimate decision lies with the provincial government.
If you are interested in learning more, contact HIV Community Link to register for one of their engagement sessions. You can contact them by visiting their website at www.calgaryscs.com, emailing them at supervisedconsumption@hivcl.org, or calling them at 587-393-4095.
As engaged communities, there is no shortage of items, ideas, and projects to be informed about and provide your feedback.
Please keep us in the loop when you provide your comments and submit your comments, we’re interested in hearing your feedback.
Thank you,
Gian-Carlo
Our city budget drives what our neighbourhoods look like, how we’re connected, and how essential services are delivered to us all. Photo source: The Daily Times
Date: September 11, 2018
The Budget.
It’s the most important thing we as a city do. It drives what our neighbourhoods look like, how we’re connected, and how essential services are delivered to us all.
Every four years, The City creates business plans and budgets. This year is no different. This new four-year (2019-2022) budget program called One Calgary is becoming more service-focused. To do this, each department is putting forward their budget by service delivery, instead of by department.
Over the years, I’ve heard that you want to know more about the services provided, how your tax dollars are invested, how that investment is delivered to you everyday, and how that investment shapes your future.
This new way of viewing The City’s service plans and budgets will make it clear what services are provided, how much those services cost, and how those services provide you value. You’ve told me that there are things that matter to you that you feel are inadequately funded, with some of these everyday things - like snow removal, parks maintenance, illegal dumping, bylaw officers, and traffic calming.
I’ve also heard from you that the larger items that will shape our city for the better aren’t given the appropriate amount of resources, and it’s shown through the lack of funding. Items like transportation, pedestrian and cycling infrastructure, affordable housing, planning and development policies and programs like Main Streets and Step Forward, along with the seniors Age-Friendly Strategy (to name a few) aren’t budgeted for in a way that will deliver our success into the future.
I’m calling on you and your neighbours to tell me what your funding priorities are. Photo source: Iris Jegen
The City will begin engaging you on the One Calgary budget process in November, but I want your feedback much sooner than that. While I know from many of you who have attended the Ward 9 Community Objectives Workshops what your priorities are, I’m calling on you and your neighbours to tell me what your funding priorities are so that during budget deliberations, I can have laser clarity and ensure that the resources and tools that we need to continue building Great Neighbourhoods is locked into the budget.
Please send me an email at ward09@calgary.ca with your name, community, and your top 10 important items so they can be addressed during budget deliberations. The more responses, the better.
If you would like more information, feel free to check out some more of the budget pages:
2019-2022 Service Plans and Budgets hub page at calgary.ca/yourservices
I hope to hear from you soon.
Gian-Carlo
P.S. sign-up for my Ward 9 e-newsletter at www.bit.ly/Ward9Newsletter