Calgary mayor touts success of downtown strategy and plans for a big 2023

As 2022 winds down and a new year approaches, Calgary's mayor sat down this week with CBC News for a look back— and to the year ahead — as Calgary shakes off years of economic gloom.

Jyoti Gondek recently celebrated the first anniversary of her 2021 election as the first woman to serve as Calgary's mayor.

Fresh off council's approval of a new four-year budget, which will bring numerous improvements for Calgarians and a 4.4-per cent property tax increase, Gondek said she's looking forward to a year of progress.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

DOWNTOWN STRATEGY

Question: In the budget, council affirmed its commitment to the downtown strategy. In terms of the office-to-residential conversions, how much more potential do you think there is in that part of the strategy?

Answer: I think when we kicked off the revitalization strategy, we believed in it. We were hopeful. But now that we've seen some of the results come in, we are incredibly optimistic. We changed 777,000 square feet of former office space into residential units, which translates to about 707 new homes downtown.

We invested about $50 million into those conversions as an incentive and we were able to draw $100 million from the private sector. So with that kind of an example in place, we are moving forward with more of that. We are also exploring ways to engage with post secondaries in some of that office space to see what we can do with our local universities and colleges.

Q: There are still entire buildings that are sitting empty downtown. How far can (office conversions) go before it reaches its maximum in terms of numbers of units that the market can tolerate being converted to residential units?

A: It doesn't all have to be residential. That was the first phase of the conversion project that we were doing. I would point out to folks that affordable housing has also been a part of this conversion system. So the Neoma new housing project (an affordable housing conversion on Seventh Avenue) is providing much needed space for families as well as the supports that they need as they're coming out of crisis. So it's not just standalone residential units. There are some great wrap-around services that go along with this. And as I said, we're exploring the opportunity for post-secondary to take up space and any other great creative ideas that might take us towards a different path of mixed-use. We are open to all of it.

BILL 1: ALBERTA SOVEREIGNTY

Q: Do you think that that piece of legislation is going to pose a problem for Calgary?

A: I think what we need to realize is that we haven't yet seen an example of how it would be used, and that's when things will start to get very real. If we are put into a position where we have to defy one order of government versus the other, that is going to be very complicated and it's not going to be something we can sustain. So I'm hopeful that the provincial government understands the type of untenable position they might put us in and really think about the impacts of tying us to a defiance order.

Q: Because of the relationship between the city and the province, how difficult is it for a mayor to decide when to speak, when not to speak on something as thorny as this?

A: There's a lot of people that will say you shouldn't speak out because you might jeopardize a favourable outcome on any given project or it might cost you your funding or it'll damage your relationship. In this particular case, I think it was incredibly important for me to stand up and speak up about how this might impact us. I mean, to draw a fair comparison, we have a premier who's calling out the prime minister for overreach. I'm simply doing the same thing because I view this as being overreach and creating a difficult position for us. So it's not intended to be personal or disrespectful, but it will have very serious consequences if it's not dealt with appropriately.

Q: At a certain point, the province does have a hammer, right?

PERSONAL SECURITY

Q: You have spoken out on a few occasions this year about matters relating to your personal security. Past mayors have had security issues but there's been a real escalation of things this year. Do you have concerns about how that escalation may affect people considering a future in public office?

A: I think what's interesting about the situation we find ourselves in is the number of elected officials who have become somewhat numb. So when I was in Ottawa this month for the big city mayors caucus and meetings of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, there was a panel that talked about the escalating violence and rhetoric and polarization. And I would say everyone in that room that was an elected official simply nodded as people were telling their stories. 'Oh yeah, your house. A picture of it. Plus the address was put on Instagram. Sure, I can see that happening.' "Oh, someone targeted you on Facebook by posting your phone number and your kids pictures? Yep, I can see that happening.' We're numb.

That's not OK and that's why when I spoke up at the end of August and I said we've created a culture where we are supposed to be quiet and just deal with this, and that is incredibly dangerous. We have to speak up about the fear mongering, the intimidation, the attempts to keep us quiet, the attempts to keep us in a corner can't be done. You cannot have elected officials living this way. So am I worried about whether other people will run in the future? Absolutely I am. Am I also worried that someone in an elected position right now is going to have to face something incredibly serious? I'm incredibly worried about that.

Q: How does this get corrected?

A: I think the legislation needs to change. I think lawmakers need to understand that you can have it very black and white. For example, you cannot hold a demonstration at someone's home. That would be kind of simple to do.

WORLD PETROLEUM CONGRESS

Q: There's this big international event that's coming to Calgary next September, the World Petroleum Congress. What's going to be different about this event than the last time that gathering was held in Calgary?

A: I think the most significant thing about the World Petroleum Congress right now is that the theme of the conference is pathways to net zero, and I think we've got an amazing opportunity to highlight what our businesses and the oilsands are doing. I think we've got an opportunity to display that. The Energy Transition Centre downtown in the Ampersand building is doing some really great innovative work.

I think it is high time that Calgary demonstrated that we take this very seriously and our commitment has been steady throughout the decades. People talk about a transition. Energy has been transitioning for many, many years. Now we are at a transformative point and that's what will be highlighted at that conference.