Medicine Hat Minute: Uride Expansion, Election Candidates, and Rezoning Vacant Land

Medicine Hat Minute - Your weekly one-minute summary of Medicine Hat politics

This Week In Medicine Hat:

• The Public Services Committee will meet this morning at 8:00 am. On the agenda is a Managing Director’s Service Area Update which includes the Community Wellbeing Plan Kickoff, the Ancestors Reburial Project, the Echo Dale Boating Lake Liner Replacement and Fair Entry Subscription Rate Updates. The last part of the meeting will be closed to the public during which time the Committee will discuss a Curling Club operational update.
  
  
• On Wednesday, there will be a meeting of the Administrative and Legislative Review Committee at 3:45 pm. No agenda is available for this meeting yet. The Energy and Infrastructure Committee will meet on Thursday at 3:45 pm. No agenda is available for this meeting yet either.
  
  
• The Medicine Hat Exhibition & Stampede will announce details of its 2023 season on Tuesday. The Stampede will take place July 26th to 29th this year.

Last Week In Medicine Hat:

• It was announced that ride-share company Uride is planning to expand into Medicine Hat. This will be the first Alberta location for Uride, but it already operates in several communities in Ontario and British Columbia. The company plans to be up and running in time for summer but needs a few dozen more drivers to ensure they can fulfill demand.
  
  
• The Municipal Planning Commission gave initial approval to rezone vacant land next to the City's fleet garage for affordable housing. The proposed land is considered generally incompatible for residential development due to its location between heavy equipment storage, warehousing, and a drug treatment facility, but the area is seen as a priority intensification area in the municipal development plan. The City owns several storage yards and properties along Kingsway Avenue and College Avenue, including the Marshall Avenue Yard off Spencer Street that may eventually be evaluated and marketed to private-sector development in the future, though there is currently no immediate timeline.
  
  
• Premier Danielle Smith announced she will be running again in the riding of Brooks-Medicine Hat. Smith secured the seat in a fall byelection with 54% of the vote. NDP candidate Gwedoline Dirk, one of Smith’s opponents in the byelection, has also been confirmed to run. In Cypress-Medicine Hat, the NDP has nominated Cathy Hogg, while the UCP will nominate a candidate in a March 16th contest. The general election will likely take place on May 29th though the writ could drop earlier.

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