‘GET ’ER DONE’ REPLACED BY ‘LET’S ALL WORK TOGETHER’

Iveson’s council works very differently than Mandel’s did, but major projects need work

No one called out or criticized Mayor Don Iveson when he took a moment to boast a bit about the accomplishments of city council over the past four years.

Iveson’s praise kicked off the final meeting of this council before the Oct. 16 civic election. His words were well-received by his fellow councillors, which came as no surprise. This group has generally got along well.

Indeed, co-operation has defined this council at the policy level, too. As Iveson put it Tuesday: “The most significant highlights are how we’ve worked together. I think we’ve had a collaborative council.”

Iveson leads a “let’s all get along” council. It stands in contrast to former mayor Stephen Mandel’s “get ’er done” council, which blasted through the fierce opposition of vested interests to get a regional government system in place, rebuild crumbling neighbourhood infrastructure, supercharge LRT construction, close the City Centre Airport, and build a new downtown arena.

Where Mandel’s council waged and won many wars, Iveson and his council are more likely to meet the opponent before the main hostilities commence, or after the first few nasty skirmishes, and negotiate a compromise.

I’ve grumbled as much as any about the city’s botched bike lanes and ill-advised photo radar cash grab. I’ve cursed delayed bridge openings and the traffic jams caused by LRT lines that were supposed to relieve congestion. But in any final assessment of this council, they deserve credit for building consensus to help solve or lessen some major problems.

In 2013, a major battle was shaping up with Leduc County over Edmonton’s aggressive annexation plans south of the city, but Iveson and his council found a way to negotiate a win-win settlement. The cities and towns of the capital region are also now committed to work together to bring in new business, not fight each other for it.

Iveson also reached out to Aboriginal communities on numerous fronts, including to see if we can co-operate on creating a new provincial park within city boundaries in the Big IslandWoodbend area.

As for photo radar, when it first became clear the city adopted a new and aggressive policy by secretly dropping the tolerance for speeding by five km/h over the limit, which tripled revenues over two years, Iveson initially responded to complaints by playing the law-and-order heavy:

“I’m a lawmaker,” he said. “I make laws not to be casually obeyed as it suits you.”

Soon enough, though, council and city traffic safety officials listened and did what numerous critics said was needed: the city brought in digital speed signs, now numbering 150, to inform and educate drivers on the limit and how fast they should be going.

Another example of listening and learning is bike lanes. Council got an earful about spending $11 million on 63 kilometres of mostly “sharrow” bike lanes, painted lines on the road that almost nobody uses and almost everybody hates. But new bike lanes built downtown are segregated by physical barriers, making them safer and more usable.

Only in one major area — infill — has Iveson’s council retained the “get ’er done” attitude of old. There’s been some justified unhappiness about lot-splitting, especially over messy construction sites, but exciting and empowering new regulations have given homeowners a way to maximize the subdivision potential of their lots. At the same time, fading core neighbourhoods such as Old Scona and the Quarters should get the thousands of new residents they need by way of residential towers.

The Mandel era’s “get ’er done” led to a few hangovers, mainly because city administration was inexperienced in handling numerous large infrastructure projects at once. It stumbled badly on a few, which led to the delayed openings of the Walterdale and 102 Avenue over Groat Road bridges and the Metro Line LRT.

Iveson and his new councillors argue they have taken the right action in major project management, first by firing the former city manager, then working to bring in better reporting practices on major projects.

Of course, Iveson has been greatly assisted by the election of the Trudeau and Notley governments. They share the same general city-building vision. Iveson certainly had a much easier time getting $480 million to help rebuild the confusing mess of the Yellowhead Highway and its interchanges and on-ramps.

It’s hard to deny the progress made on regional co-operation and reconciliation, on tricky transportation files and on infill. All that said, if Iveson and incumbent councillors are reelected and the city’s handling of major projects doesn’t improve, it will be time to axe the decisionmakers, not just the managers.