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Weekend, May 27-29, 2011 www.metronews.ca News worth sharing.
Beer. Fest
Police debt to province rises
In less than two months, over $500,000 in fees for licence plate queries amassed Service can’t cover cost, says commission chair JEREMY NOLAIS
@METRONEWS.CA
Lacy Peter, co-organizer of Calgary International BeerFest, serves up some fine ale ahead of the festivities getting underway Friday. JEREMY NOLAIS/METRO
Let the drinks flow The Big Four Building at Stampede Park will likely be rocking this weekend as Calgary International BeerFest serves up 200 different beers from 32 countries, food samplings from 20 different restaurants, live entertainment and screening of NHL playoff hockey on a big screen. The event runs Friday and Saturday. For more information, visit calgarybeerfest.com
The clock is ticking and the burden of a new service fee continues to weigh on those involved with the Calgary Police Service. Effective April 1, the province announced it would start charging municipalities $15 each time they consulted the provincial licenceplate database. At the time, city officials said the charge was buried in the provincial budget and came with little warning. The fee has added $10,000 daily to the cost of doing business at the Calgary Police Service — something it simply can’t afford, says the chair of the Calgary Police Commission. “We have told the city we will need this money,” Mike Shaikh said. “I was told, ‘Don’t worry, it will be fine.’ I expected things to be dealt with a month ago but have heard nothing.” Shaikh added that the police
service has yet to pay the fee as it awaits any potential resolution. Ald. John Mar, a former police officer and member of the commission board, has said if the fee stands it could potentially impact the number of officers patrolling Calgary streets. “We have to be patient ... we can’t force the province of Alberta to do anything,” Mar said Thursday. Provincial spokesperson Sharon Lopatka says discussions are ongoing but could not provide a timeline for resolution. “They (provincial ministers) absolutely understand the concerns and are working as quickly as possible,” she said. Mar is confident a resolution will be found, but said the city will be left with two unsavoury options if forced to cover the fee. “The very last thing we want to do is cut jobs and the second last thing we want to do is raise taxes as a direct result,” he said.
Paying the debt Fee: Provincial officials have said the fee is necessary to cover rising costs associated with running the provincial licence plate database. Parking tickets: Earlier this month, Calgary city council voted to raise the cost of parking tickets by $15 to cover nearly $6 million lost annually at the Calgary Parking Authority as a result of the fee. Resolution: Police chiefs from across Alberta did meet with provincial representatives to address the added fee last month; however, no resolution was found. Manpower: In early April, Calgary police Chief Rick Hanson said the service would exhaust all options before having to cut manpower, in light of the Service Alberta $15 fee.