Explosive growth in south Calgary a riding challenge

Electoral Boundaries Commission hears submissions on population increase

The group charged with redrawing Alberta’s riding boundaries kicked off two days of hearings in Calgary on Tuesday facing one of its major challenges — the rapidly expanding population at the southern edge of the city.

Under the most recent census numbers released by Statistics Canada, the riding of CalgarySouth East, with a population of 92,248, is nearly double the size of the average of Alberta’s population divided by the province’s 87 legislative assembly seats.

Jordan Pinkster, president of the Progressive Conservative constituency association for CalgarySouth East, told the Alberta Electoral Boundaries Commission on Tuesday that the area is poised for growth as it encompasses communities such as Mahogany, Auburn Bay, Copperfield and Legacy.

“Population aside, the other question to ask is, are the boundaries logical? And with CalgarySouth East that isn’t exactly the case,” said Pinkster, who recommended the constituency be divided into four different ridings.

Interim PC Leader Ric McIver echoed Pinkster’s comments, noting significant growth is expected in the deep south of Calgary in the years ahead.

With Calgary currently holding 25 seats in the legislature, the average population per riding would equal 49,658, nearly 3,000 higher than the 46,697 provincial average. Other ridings that are significantly higher than the provincial average are Calgary-Northern Hills, at 59,861, and Calgary-McCall, at 64,613.

There has also been significant increases in some of the ridings surrounding the city, with Airdrie at 64,609, Banff-Cochrane at 56,399, Highwood at 54,978 and Chestermere-Rocky View at 54,061. Many rural seats are under the average, however, with Drumheller-Stettler the most significant in southern Alberta at 36,810.

Myra Bielby, the Alberta Court of Appeal justice who chairs the boundary commission, said there has been a large increase in population throughout the province between the 2011 and 2016 censuses, but the growth has been disproportionate in Calgary and Edmonton.

She said no decisions have been made, including whether Calgary needs another legislature seat. Under provincial law, ridings can vary from the average by as much as 25 per cent, while four ridings can exceed the 25 per cent variance.

Both McIver and Wildrose MLA Derek Fildebrandt urged the panel, which will issue an interim report in May and a final report in October, not to make major changes to the current makeup of rural seats given the sheer size of most ridings in the country.

“Right now there are ridings where the MLAs have to go a long, long way to get to all their constituents,” said McIver, the MLA for Calgary-Hays.

“Making those ridings bigger … would not actually serve democracy well.”

Fildebrandt said “the requirements of a rural MLA are very, very different.”

“A rural MLA is expected to go to so much more, they’re expected to know so much more, be so much more involved,” said the Strathmore-Brooks MLA. “The expectations and demands on our offices are so much higher.”

Bielby and other members of the panel asked those making submissions about the feasibility of hybrid ridings that would be primarily urban, but include some rural components.

She said the hybrid idea is viewed by many as not ideal but it is something the panel needs to at least review given demographics.

“If we did have to go beyond the city boundary a bit in some direction, where would that make best sense?” said Bielby.

McIver also requested that the riding of Calgary-Greenway be renamed

A rural MLA is expected to go to so much more, they’re expected to know so much more, be so much more involved.

Calgary-Bhullar after the late MLA Manmeet Bhullar, who was struck by a car and killed in late 2015 when he stopped to help a stranded motorist. Presenter Michelle Robinson also advocated renaming the riding as CalgaryBhullar.

There are several ridings named after former premiers, while the constituency of Dunvegan-Central Peace-Notley is named after former NDP leader Grant Notley, the father of Premier Rachel Notley, who was killed in a plane crash in 1984.

The electoral boundaries commission will continue its Calgary hearings Wednesday at the Coast Plaza Hotel.