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This Month's Issue:
State of the City
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Mayor Cathy Heron's State of the City Presentation
On September 19, 2018, Mayor Cathy Heron delivered her 2018 State of the City address at the St. Albert Chamber of Commerce's Business Lunch. Her speech focused on the community's challenges and opportunities as well as collaboration with Council and other municipalities in the region. Highlights from her presentation are as follows:
- This term, St. Albert Council has changed their philosophy of governing and leading at City Hall to shift their focus away from the day-to-day operation to focus on high level strategic planning.
- There is a need for well planned, guided growth that does not burden our infrastructure but still embraces the development of new neighbourhoods, services and business opportunities. One of Council's top strategic priorities this term is to develop a Growth Policy Framework to guide growth. To better understand how to guide our growth, Council has met with several relevant stakeholders to get a better understanding of what our current and future developers need.
- The Municipal Development Plan is currently being re-written. This plan will define how we cultivate growth and it is an area where collaboration with residents, developers and other key partners is essential. The Mayor challenged everyone involved to "think big" as she believes there is no room for mediocrity when thinking about our future.
- As we grow as a municipality, we will eventually and quickly run out of room. This term Council will tackle a huge initiative to expand our borders to the North and to the West into Sturgeon County. Representatives from the City and Sturgeon County have started to meet and Council is hoping to have an arrangement for the annexation by the end of their term.
- St. Albert has two major roads - Ray Gibbon Drive and St. Albert Trail - and traffic is an issue on both.
- While the twinning of Ray Gibbon Drive is not going to happen anytime soon, there are things we can do to improve traffic. Changes to the intersections on Ray Gibbon Drive at 137 Ave and LeClair Way are being explored and will help improve the flow of traffic. The Mayor and Administration will also continue to meet with the province to advocate and keep the twinning of Ray Gibbon Drive top of mind.
- To help alleviate traffic issues along St. Albert Trail, the City is in process of installing a new Intelligent Transportation System. The system will help with the timing of lights and is the first of its kind in Canada.
- St. Albert needs to take a hard look at our infrastructure and acknowledge it is time to make an investment. Council is committed to updating our capital plan based on an assessment of community needs and financial capacity, including a review of all funding options and shared opportunities as new models of funding and ownership are out there to explore. This Council is approaching things in a non-traditional way, breaking free of the constraints of what was and taking risks with innovative approaches to building, financing and governing.
- The key to housing options is diversity and while St. Albert has options for consumers looking to purchase a house or apartment, we are missing the option of low maintenance townhouses and duplexes. Recent revisions of our land use bylaw will allow for this housing product which will help attract youth and young families to St. Albert.
- St. Albert is a city that is welcoming new business and in recent years we have seen great growth. To continue to bring economic growth to St. Albert, the City is looking at innovative strategies to bring services to new areas, such as Lakeview Business District, using exciting new technologies to make development more affordable.
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Upcoming Events
October 5
October 10
October 13
October 16
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Event Recap: St. Albert Commercial Tour
by Katrina Rossol ( krossol@stalbert.ca)
Partnering with NAIOP, the City of St. Albert Economic Development department was proud to host the third annual Commercial Development Bus Tour on September 27th and 28th. The event brought together over 60 commercial realtors, developers and interested parties to tour St. Albert to familiarize them with ongoing and upcoming commercial, industrial, land and retail developments.
This year's event saw a record number of attendees, with each tour day fully booked. The tour began with exploring downtown's
Amacon site (the old Grandin Mall) which is part of the City's Downtown Area Revitalization Plan (D.A.R.P), and then moved to South Riel to view the Anthony Henday Business Park, Bellevue Village and Midtown by Averton. It then continued to the west to view Lakeview Business District, Riverside, and Ville Giroux before heading north to the Meadows, Strata lands, Jensen lakes, Erin Ridge North and Urban district. The final stop on the tour was Campbell Business Park which showcased the newly opened AGLC facility.
The tour was followed by a networking lunch at the St. Albert Business Centre for further engagement with peers and Economic Development.
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Minimum Wage Increase: October 1, 2018
by Monty Killoh (mkilloh@stalbert.ca)
On October 1st, 2018, Alberta's minimum wage will increase to $15.00/hour. The following is a summary of some Alberta's wage-related rules, which can be explored in more detail at:
https://www.alberta.ca/minimum-wage.aspx
- The hourly minimum wage is the same for adults, liquor servers, adolescents, youth and disabled people.
- Certain employees are exempt from minimum wage standards, including real estate brokers, securities salespersons, insurance salespersons paid entirely by commission, and students in a government-approved work experience program (view the webpage for the complete list).
- Tips earned in the service industry or expense money cannot be factored into wages paid to employees.
- Employees must be paid at least 3 hours of pay at the minimum wage when they go to work, even if they're sent home (certain exceptions apply, such as a 2-hour minimum for school bus drivers, home care employees and adolescents working on a school day).
- Employees that work "split shifts" must be paid the minimum compensation (see above) for each segment of their shift if there's more than a 1-hour break between the 2 segments of the shift.
- Employers can make certain deductions below minimum wage for meals and lodging ($3.35/consumed meal & $4.41 per day's lodging, respectively).
- Certain salespersons can be paid at a "weekly" minimum wage rate ($598.00/week)
- Domestic employees (those living at their employer's home) can be paid at a "monthly" minimum wage rate ($2,848.00/month)
- For incentive-based/commission pay, the employer must determine if the minimum wage requirements have been met; to do this, an employee's wages are totaled for the employer's pay period, and then divided by the total number of hours worked in that period - if the calculated pay is less than minimum wage, the employee must be paid at least the minimum wage for all hours worked.
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The Economic Development department of the City of St. Albert is looking for local business owners, residents that provide professional business services, or residents that currently have or may have had extensive experience in business operations and growth. Preferred strengths
and experience would include any one of the following:
* Financial analysis, forecasting, valuation, or venture investment knowledge
* Corporate law
* Land development and commercial/industrial real estate
* Executive management
* Foreign investment and international trade
* Small business growth and entrepreneurship
* Owner of existing retail business or businesses
Board members advise the Economic Development department on initiatives to achieve the priorities within the Strategic Plan and Corporate Business Plan. Additionally, board members are involved in business attraction, business retention and expansion, and tourism strategies. Monthly Board meetings are scheduled every third Tuesday of the month and begin at 4:00 p.m.
As a member on the Economic Development Advisory Board, you will join like-minded business professionals and the Economic Development leadership team of the City. This is an excellent opportunity to actively work on issues important to the business and development growth of St.
Albert.
If you are interested in serving on the Economic Development Advisory Board, download this
application form and submit it with a resume and biography by email to msware@stalbert.ca or in person at
St. Albert Business Centre located at 29 Sir Winston Churchill Avenue. Completed applications must be received no later than 5 p.m. on October 11, 2018.
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Business Spotlight On... Great West Digital Agency
With content management systems, search engine optimization (SEO), search engine marketing (SEM), online adverting, programmatic media, re-marketing, mobile applications, and social media, the digital world can be confusing for businesses to navigate. That's where Great West Digital Agency can help.
Combining the graphic design and copywriting that Great West Newspapers has done for over 50 years, with new technology and modern marketing techniques, Great West Digital specializes in the creation of responsive websites, SEO, and programmatic display advertising. They work with businesses of all sizes helping them to create websites from as small as a couple of pages to complex websites that include E-commerce and donation systems. The websites they build are responsive, meaning that the layout and design of the site adjusts to fit different screen sizes so that it is easy to read and navigate whether you are looking at it on a computer, phone or tablet.
Great West Digital also helps clients buy advertising online. With a network of 18 newspapers and access to thousands of websites, applications and social media, Great West Digital can help businesses target advertising to reach consumers who are most likely to be customers.
Great West Newspapers have been a part of the St. Albert community since 1961 when they first started to publish the St. Albert Gazette. As they have expanded to include other regional newspapers, a web printing division, and now their digital agency, they have maintained their headquarters in St. Albert.
For more information contact:
The Spotlight on Business is a monthly feature wherein we highlight a local business and learn more about what they do and how they positively contribute to the identity and economy of St. Albert. If you, or someone you know, would like to be featured in a future issue, please contact npearson@stalbert.ca with a brief description of the organization.
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New Businesses in St. Albert
Commercial/Industrial Businesses
Alice Mohr PH.D Psychology
780-953-8771
2210-13 Mission
Psychology - Assessment & Treatment - Trauma, Depression, Anxiety
Browns Socialhouse St Albert
780-909-4958
205-840 St Albert Trail
Restaurant + Bar
Effing Seafoods
780-459-3713
140-44 Riel Drive
Seafood Rail & Distribution
Inner Circle Yoga - Dominelli School of Music Studio
587-991-8111
70-55 Chevigny Street
Trauma Sensitive Yoga, Vinyasa flow Yoga, Mindfulness Meditation Kids Yoga
Michael Hill
780-566-7807
375 St Albert Trail
Retailer of Jewelry
Sights and Arms Ltd.
780-940-1666
J-11 Rayborn Cres
Firearms Safety Courses + Firearms Sales & Repairs
Home-Based Businesses
Heather's Home Sense
780-717-3616
Cleaning/Janitorial Services Using Environmentally Safe/Non-Toxic Chemical
Hot Mess Cleaning Inc.
780-691-1163
Residential Cleaning Services
Inspired Mountaingirl
780-242-5975
Photography - Portraits, Pet Photography, Landscapes
Modern Pur Air St Albert
1-800-996-3878
Providing Indoor Air Quality Services to Residential, Institutional and Commercial
One of a Kind Concrete
780-221-2917
Concrete Contractor (Flatwork)
Piscopo Contracting Inc.
587-784-6530
Construction, Renovation, Home Restoration
RGT Cleaning Services
780-901-0918
Cleaning
STEM Applications (1998) Ltd.
780-459-8018
Electrical Automation Software and Hardware Design, Installation & Services
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Monthly Growth Stats
Single Family Housing Starts
Single Family Dwelling Resales
Building Permits Issued
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City of St. Albert | info@stalbert.ca
29 Sir Winston Churchill Avenue | St. Albert, AB | T8N 0G3 |
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