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Keith Gerein @keithgerein.bsky.social · 9h

Other than that, there were jokes about vintage video games, and it was generally pretty civil. Anyway, that’s it. Just 10 days to go now. Students make up about 10% of Edmonton’s population, so they could absolutely have a big impact on the result. #yeg #yegelxn 13/13

Keith Gerein @keithgerein.bsky.social · 9h

Jaffer asked Cartmell about his ideal Thanksgiving dinner. Cartmell, smiling, answered with a long list of heart-attack inducing breakfast and dinner foods impossible for any one person to consume in a single day. #yeg #yegelxn 12/13

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Keith Gerein @keithgerein.bsky.social · 9h

Knack didn’t quite say he renounces the endorsement but did say he thinks third party advertisers shouldn’t exist, and called out WFE for attack ads on Walters. Knack said he is the only mayoral candidate to release his full list of donors, not just those up to July 31. #yeg #yegelxn 11/13

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Keith Gerein @keithgerein.bsky.social · 9h

Cartmell also aimed at Knack, asking him renounce an endorsement from 3rd-party advertiser Working Families Edmonton, and demand they release their full donor list. Cartmell accused Knack of getting the advantage of being backed by a de-facto party but without the same rules. #yeg #yegelxn 10/13

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Keith Gerein @keithgerein.bsky.social · 9h

Knack answered that he made the motion to start a conversation. The province definitively answered “no” to doing more to help the homeless, so the city now has no choice but to step up, he said. #yeg #yegelxn 9/13

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Keith Gerein @keithgerein.bsky.social · 9h

The most interesting moments came late when the candidates asked questions of each other. Walters chose Knack, asking him why he made a motion last year to have the province own up to its responsibility for health and housing, but is now vowing to have the city do more on those fronts. #yeg #yegelxn

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Keith Gerein @keithgerein.bsky.social · 9h

Jaffer took a swipe at Knack and Cartmell for the city’s failed electric busses and also expressed some disdain for the $100-million bike lane project as coming at the expense of other infrastructure. In that room, it didn’t get a great response. #yeg #yegelxn 7/13

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Keith Gerein @keithgerein.bsky.social · 9h

Walters went after Knack at one point for choosing not to put more money into overdose response and encampment response teams over the last four years to better deal with homelessless. Knack didn’t really respond to that (or else I missed it). #yeg #yeglexn 6/13

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Keith Gerein @keithgerein.bsky.social · 9h

All four said they supported the idea of expanding the leisure access pass to post-secondary students, though Jaffer said he hoped that it could be paid for through sponsorships rather than coming out of the city treasury #yeg #yegelxn 5/13

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Keith Gerein @keithgerein.bsky.social · 9h

They agreed on a lot. One area of difference was on infill, where Jaffer/Cartmell leaned into putting more focus on Blatchford and other big open spaces, Walters emphasized more density around transit, and Knack warned against straying too far from current density plans. #yeg #yegelxn 4/13

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Keith Gerein @keithgerein.bsky.social · 9h

There was no clear winner. All four candidates had good/less good moments. No one stood out. As it was at U of A, a lot of the questions were on topics of interest to students — transit, affordability, housing, youth employment, etc. Climate change was even mentioned a few times. #yeg #yegelxn 3/13

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Keith Gerein @keithgerein.bsky.social · 9h

Overall, there wasn’t much of note from the debate, because all of the candidates have answered pretty much every possible question multiple times over at this point. Indeed, this is something like their 8th or 9th debate, and frankly, they all came across as a bit tired. #yeg #yegelxn 2/13

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Keith Gerein @keithgerein.bsky.social · 9h

I have just returned from watching the latest Edmonton mayoral debate, this one at University of Alberta in front of about 200 people. Michael Walters, Tim Cartmell, Andrew Knack and Rahim Jaffer were the participants. I have a thread on what happened. #yeg #yegelxn 1/13

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Reposted by Keith Gerein

Matthew Black @matthewblack.ca · 22h

And here's @keithgerein.bsky.social with his take on what we've learned from the three-part series

"An archaic consumer protection system built more for the protection of businesses and the convenience of the system itself, rather than the needs of the public"

#yeg

Keith Gerein: Alberta's malnourished restaurant inspection system has become indigestible

Alberta must make upgrades to its restaurant inspection system to improve transparency for diners and impose stricter enforcement on bad eateries

edmontonjournal.com

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Keith Gerein @keithgerein.bsky.social · 1d

On our second day of coverage looking into concerns with Alberta's restaurant inspection system, industry workers share their horror stories. edmontonjournal.com/news/local-n... #yeg #yegfood #ableg

'We can certainly make people sick': Edmonton restaurant workers sound alarm on food safety risks

Edmonton restaurant workers sound the alarm on unsafe food handling practices, insufficient training and how the system is failing diners

edmontonjournal.com

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Keith Gerein @keithgerein.bsky.social · 1d

My latest column on Edmonton's civic election. edmontonjournal.com/opinion/colu... #yeg #yegelxn

Keith Gerein: Which of Edmonton's mayoral contenders has the right tack with the UCP government?

The Alberta's teachers' strike raises a fascinating election question — how do voters want the next Edmonton mayor to handle relations with Premier Danielle Smith?

edmontonjournal.com

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Reposted by Keith Gerein

trevorrobb.bsky.social @trevorrobb.bsky.social · 2d

According to the data obtained and analyzed during this @edmontonjournal.com / @macewanu.bsky.social investigation, more than 250 food establishments across Edmonton went at least two years without seeing an inspector. #yeg

edmontonjournal.com/news/local-n...

Crawling bugs and half-baked enforcement: Alberta’s restaurant inspections a recipe for foodborne illness — Investigation

Lax inspections, excessive violations and poor transparency in Alberta's restaurant inspection system is a recipe for foodborne Illness

edmontonjournal.com

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Keith Gerein @keithgerein.bsky.social · 8d

Rival Tim Cartmell fired back at Walters, saying any suggestion that the city can mess with or hold back education tax money is "careless, misleading, and risks vital city funding." 4/4 #yeg #yegelxn

Keith Gerein @keithgerein.bsky.social · 8d

Walters wants an "Edmonton Accord" to guarantee consultation:

"As Mayor, I would use every tool available — including what we do with Education Property Taxes that we collect on behalf of the Province — to advocate for what Edmonton needs and to stand up for Edmontonians." 3/4 #yeg #yegelxn

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Keith Gerein @keithgerein.bsky.social · 8d

The statement is a swing into provincial jurisdiction, and comes after Walters criticized the UCP government interfering in Edmonton's affairs without proper consultation. Nonetheless, Walters says it's fair game because a strike will have big impacts on the city and its residents. #yeg 2/4

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Keith Gerein @keithgerein.bsky.social · 8d

Edmonton mayoral candidate Michael Walters came out with a strong — and possibly controversial — statement today, supporting Alberta teachers and calling on the province to come to the table with a fair deal. #yeg #yegelxn #abed 1/4

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Keith Gerein @keithgerein.bsky.social · 9d

It's not a definitive list of course. Several controversial decisions didn't make the final cut of 12, including mosquito spraying, public spaces bylaw, equalizing rental and non-rental tax rates, police commission appointments, the gondola, district plans, south LRT funding, etc. #yegelxn #yeg

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Keith Gerein @keithgerein.bsky.social · 9d

For those still weighing their voting intentions on Edmonton incumbents, this look back at council's record of decisions over the past four years may help a bit. ...
edmontonjournal.com/opinion/colu... via
@edmontonjournal
#yeg #yegelxn #yegcc

Keith Gerein: A dozen key votes that characterized the 2021-2025 Edmonton city council

Edmonton city council was known for a number of key votes on taxes, infrastructure, funding for Edmonton police and infill regulations

edmontonjournal.com

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Keith Gerein @keithgerein.bsky.social · 13d

It is also an assessment limited to how they performed in council chambers, not the work in their constituencies which often takes place outside of public view. Happy to hear your takes. #yeg #yegelxn 8/8

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Keith Gerein @keithgerein.bsky.social · 13d

Also remember that my column is an assessment of the group, not individual councillors. Each councillor has their own record of motions, votes and advocacy that voters should take into account because it doesn’t always match up to the narrative of the whole. #yeg #yegelxn 7/

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