Prince Albert City Hall. (Alison Sandstrom/paNOW Staff)

By Alison Sandstrom

Council preview

Back alleys and big land deal on council agenda

Jun 29, 2020 | 8:00 AM

A bylaw that would create a curfew in Prince Albert alleys and a potential land acquisition for the city’s new multi-million dollar aquatic and arena complex are set to dominate Monday night’s city council meeting.

Council nearly passed its controversial alley access bylaw at the end of April but paused just short after receiving a letter from Prince Albert Grand Council (PAGC) Grand Chief Brain Hardlotte.

Hardlotte asked the city’s politicians to hold off on giving the bylaw third and final reading until the PAGC could be consulted and expressed concerns the curfew would lead to discrimination and racial profiling.

Monday night’s agenda indicates the City has engaged in discussion with the PAGC since the bylaw was last before council two months ago and has agreed to “work proactively with the PAGC to help resolve any concerns if they arise.” Administration is also now recommending that if passed the bylaw be revisited in six months.

If implemented, individuals found in an alley between 12 a.m. and 6 a.m. could be subject to a $500-$5,000 fine.

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There are a number of exemptions to the bylaw, including for residents accessing their properties. Significantly, while in the past, city administration recommended anyone who lived within 500 m of the alley not be subject to the curfew, it’s now being proposed that the focus be narrowed, to only those whose property is directly beside the alley in question and their visitors. Other exemptions, including for people attending to an emergency or accessing their place of work remain unchanged.

Before voting on the bylaw, councillors are set to hear a presentation from a resident who opposes it. A letter from the Canadian Civil Liberties Association condemning the proposed curfew as “a step towards the criminalization of poverty” is also on the agenda.

City eyes land for new aquatic and arena complex

The other big item at Monday night’s meeting will be the potential purchase of a $6.5 million 18-acre serviced parcel of land in the south-east of the city. The parcel is being recommended as the location of a multi-million dollar aquatic and arena complex. The city announced it had secured partial funding for the project in September.

City administration considered two other locations for the complex – next to the Alfred Jenkins Field House and east of Saskatchewan Polytechnic – but is recommending the land owned by Signature Development Corporation, south of the Art Hauser Centre, as the best option, largely due to the opportunities for growth at that location.

Also, on the agenda is a proposed bylaw that would cap the number of cannabis stores in the city at three and another that would see fines issued to properties police and bylaw officers are frequently called to.

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alison.sandstrom@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @alisandstrom