Calgary city council has voted to continue the process of repealing blanket rezoning 12-3 with all except for Couns. Myke Atkinson, Nathaniel Schmidt, and Andrew Yule opposed.
Now, council continues through the procedural work of reading through the bylaw and debating possible amendments.
As part of the debate today, Yule said he would not vote for repeal without some sort of replacement in mind.
“I just can’t support a full repeal until we find something better as a council,” he said. “And we can do that, we have time. “We just have to move onward.”
A surprise flip for the vote is Coun. DJ Kelly who, unlike most of council, ran on a platform of amending blanket rezoning rather than trashing it.
He says his constituents have said loud and clear that the current policy is not delivering for them.
“I am voting to repeal this policy, but I want to be equally clear that repeal cannot be the end of the conversation,” he said. “It must be the beginning of a better one, one rooted in trust, informed by local expertise and worthy of the city we are responsible for shaping.”
Mayor Jeromy Farkas says that although he ran on a platform of repeal and replace, he believes the work is underway to find a new direction, and this move is about compromise.
“If I was thinking about 10 years ago, my first time as a member of council, I probably would not have wanted to support this because I don’t feel like it would be good enough,” he said. “I campaigned on repeal and replace — this isn’t a wholesome replacement. But, what I’ve learned in my time since is the need for compromise.
“I am more than willing to support this as a compromise, despite the fact that it doesn’t deliver everything that I’m looking for, because I’m confident that we’ve already begun laying the groundwork,” Farkas continued. “We’ve funded unprecedented levels of affordable housing from a capital and land standpoint. “
Council next will begin readings of the bylaw, as well as debating and voting on amendments.