This election remember to #askaboutYEG

Ahead of this spring’s provincial election, I’m encouraging you to “Ask About Edmonton” when candidates knock on your door.

The City of Edmonton’s #askaboutYEG campaign, which launched today, is about mobilizing citizens to champion their city – because Edmonton priorities should be at the forefront of provincial candidates’ minds. It’s important for the next government to know that Edmonton matters – we are essential to Alberta’s economy. That is why we want to encourage you to ask candidates about their plans to support our city.

You might ask how the provincial, and upcoming federal elections affect the future of our city. The answer is: in many ways. In fact this week alone, we were reminded how essential support from other levels of government is to ensure Edmonton is prepared for the future. On Monday, the Government of Canada announced $1 billion for the expansion of our Valley Line West and Metro LRT expansion into Blatchford and $54 million for flood mitigation projects intended to keep Edmontonians safe for years to come. These critical infrastructure investments would not be able to move forward without this support.

In order for us to build the large infrastructure projects required to manage growth, like transit network and roadway expansion, we rely heavily on provincial government funding. A concrete example of this is Edmonton’s four year, $4.3 billion capital budget that Council recently approved – $1.2 billion of which is from provincial funding. With over a quarter of our funding coming from the Province, we need to protect and grow these investments in the years to come.

The “Ask About Edmonton” campaign suggests you bring up these kinds of questions with election candidates:

• How will your government ensure Edmonton receives its fair share of revenue for much-needed infrastructure projects (like fire stations, roads, and affordable housing)?
• How do you plan to champion job growth in our city to ensure Edmonton’s long-term economic prosperity?
• What is your party’s position on supporting Edmonton’s work in adapting to and mitigating the impacts of climate change on our city?

When candidates knock on my door, I’ll be taking the opportunity to discuss their commitment to helping us build out our transit network and reduce congestion on our roads, their plans to build more affordable housing in our city, and their commitment to continuing to invest in agencies and initiatives that drive innovation in Edmonton – and create the jobs of the future. These are the issues that are particularly important to me, but ultimately this campaign is about encouraging you to bring up important economic, environmental and social issues that matter to you and your loved ones.

As this election cycle begins, I hope you take the opportunity to start a positive conversation about the kind of city you want to live in – and the kind of partnership we’re after. Ask about Edmonton when candidates come to your door and encourage a neighbour to ask around too!