“It’s better to be in the kitchen than on the menu,” says Rocky View County (RVC) Division 1 Councillor Kevin Hanson pithily, as he reflects on his recent uncontested election as vice-chair of the Calgary Metropolitan Region Board (CMRB).
Hanson admitted when the CMRB was first mandated by the province, not too many on RVC council or in administration were keen on the idea – including himself.
“The loss of autonomy and just the fact that you aren’t totally independent in making decisions was a hard pill to swallow. But, on the flip side, now that there is more heads at the table, you are probably ending up with better decisions,” he conceded.
The CMRB includes elected representatives from the City of Calgary and its various surrounding municipalities, including Rocky View County, the City of Airdrie, the City of Chestermere, the Town of Cochrane, Foothills County, the Town of High River, and the Town of Okotoks.
The mandate of the CMRB is to support the long-term sustainability of the Calgary Metropolitan Region by ensuring environmentally responsible land-use planning; growth management and efficient use of land; developing policies regarding the coordination of regional infrastructure investment and service delivery; promoting the economic wellbeing and competitiveness of the Calgary Metropolitan Region; and developing policies outlining how the board shall engage the public in consultation.
While all these areas are of interest, Hanson said the key priority all the board members can agree on is charting a common course on regional economic development by creating joint planning areas so that each municipality isn’t tripping over its neighbour’s feet.
“Perhaps certain types of businesses belong in a more rural setting, they need a little more elbow room, and other types of services may belong closer to transit, where you need access to low-cost labour,” Hanson explained. “I think the CMRB just formalizes some of that discussion, and gives a bit of a framework for municipalities to cooperate and collaborate with each other.
“If done right, it will really develop the whole region more than it would have if we had all gone alone.”
Hanson said his recent appointment to vice-chair of the board is a sign RVC is playing an important and active leadership role on the CMRB.
“I think we have earned some respect at the table,” he stated.
Going forward, Hanson hopes the collaboration between the CMRB’s Calgary regional communities can remain productive. He cited the example of the recent annexation discussions and joint development agreement arrived at between the City of Calgary and Rocky View County in what was formerly known as the County’s Shepard lands. He said this showed such inter-municipal collaborations can be done right in a mutually beneficial way– fostered by ongoing good relations between local municipalities through bodies such as the CMRB.
“Through better collaboration and discussions at the annexation table, a different, more collaborative route was taken,” Hanson explained. “And that annexation converted into more of a revenue and cost-sharing agreement going forward.
“The boundary doesn’t have to necessarily be a hard line,” he added. “It can be a bit of a fuzzy line where both Calgary and Rocky View are collaborating to make something (good) happen.”
