Council returns today with full agenda on housing, animal control and other matters

By Al Beeber - Lethbridge Herald on January 21, 2025.

LETHBRIDGE HERALDabeeber@lethbridgeherald.com

Lethbridge city council returns to chambers today for their first meeting of 2025 after a holiday break.
This will be the first full meeting of council since they wrapped up two days of meetings on December 12. It starts at 12:30 p.m.
Council has a full agenda with nine items alone on the consent agenda. They will also be asked to give first readings to a pair of bylaws and will consider second and third readings for nine others including matters that came up during public hearings on Dec. 12. Those hearing matters include:
Bylaw 6459 — Land Use Bylaw Amendment re: 404 and 408 12 St. S.
Bylaw 6560 — Amendment to London Road Area Redevelopment plan re: 524, 528 and 532 13 St. S.
Bylaw 6461 — Land Use Bylaw Amendment Amendment re: 524, 528 and 532 13 St. S.
Bylaw 6462 — Land Use Bylaw Amendment re: 537, 539 and 543 13 St. S.
Bylaw 6464 — Amendment to London Road Area Redevelopment Plan re: 605 5 ST. S. And 510 6 Ave. S.
Bylaw 6465 — Land Use Bylaw Amendment re: 605 5 St. S. And 510 6 Ave. S.
These bylaws all involve new proposed multi-family housing developments that have been been proposed.
Council will also consider second and third readings to a new Animal Care and Control Bylaw.
This new bylaw has several changes to previous city regulations and includes several matters relating to cats:
• Restrict the number of cats per household to six.
• Ability to take remedial action for properties containing more than six cats.
• Include provisions for a cat causing injury to a person or animal.
• Add provision for a cat defecating on private property other than the property of the owner.
• Add cat specific specified penalties ranging from $100 to $300 per offence.
As council has already heard from Regulatory Services manager Duane Ens, there will be no efforts to remove a seventh cat from households with the intent being to achieve the maximum naturally.
“If you have seven cats, we’re not coming after Snowball the day after this bylaw is presented. That’s not our intention. Our intention is to prioritize education in this area. We’ve also allowed legacy cats where property is not a cause for concern,” Ens told a meeting of the Social and Safety Standing Policy Committee in November.
The existing dog bylaw hasn’t been updated for decades, Ens told the SPC while the old Wild or Domestic Animals Bylaw was last amended in 1983.
A cat and dog micro-chipping program is also to launch this year, providing a low-cost service to the public. The program is targeted mainly at cats to reunite owners with their lost animals and keep them out of the shelter.
The micro-chipping program will be operated by Community Animal Services on a cost-recovery basis with the cost being $30. Ens told the SPC there will be no cost to the City.
Council will also be asked to give second and third readings to proposed new Election Bylaw 6473.
The passing of Bill 20 by the provincial government on Oct. 31 has impacts on the election bylaw with the prohibition of electronic tabulators for ballot counting and the requirement of an elector’s register. Hand counting for municipal elections hasn’t been done in Lethbridge since 1989.
Three matters will be considered under official business including a motion by councillor Belinda Crowson calling upon council to direct City administration to recommend an optimal balance range (minimum and maximum) for the Municipal Revenue Stabilization Reserve to ensure the reserve is serving its intended purpose and that the optimal balance recommendation be included with the review of Policy CC65 and submitted to Audit Standing Policy Committee by the second quarter of this year its intended purpose.
Council will also address a motion arising from Acting Mayor Jeff Carlson on Dec. 10 that council disband all the SPCs with work to come directly to council. That council meeting was the first of two staged in one week due to the length of the Dec. 10 public hearings and debate on resolutions involving the Lethbridge and District Exhibition. Council finished the meeting on Dec. 12.
Discussion on that motion was postponed until today after a vote to allow the public to speak on the motion today.
On Dec. 10 in support of his motion, Carlson told his fellow council members that while he enjoys “the deep dive” of committee work, he said the committees are a waste of time and feels the hours addressing matters at them should be done at the council level. He said he doesn’t want to waste people’s time in committee then deal with matters again at council.

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