WATCH: Premier Notley and Calgary mayor Naheed Nenshi met for the first time at the Alberta Legislature Tuesday. Among other topics discussed were flood mitigation projects. Gary Bobrovitz reports.
EDMONTON – Alberta Premier Rachel Notley and Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi agree that time is of the essence for building infrastructure to reduce the impact of future floods.
But after meeting with Nenshi in Edmonton today, Notley says her government is not yet ready to roll out a timeline on getting projects built, which is frustrating some recovering flood victims.
Notley’s NDP government is considering the merits of a number of projects to prevent a repeat of the 2013 floods that swamped sections of Calgary and forced thousands from their homes.
READ MORE: Calgary flood victims group pushes NDP government for solutions
The premier wants to visit affected communities in southern Alberta and meet with stakeholders, and says she’ll get recommendations to cabinet soon.
“I look forward to bringing this to the cabinet and very soon, and in a way that ensures Calgarians are protected,” said Notley.
READ MORE: ‘I just want an answer’ – Bragg Creek still without flood protection
She says that a review of all infrastructure spending by former Bank of Canada governor David Dodge will not delay decisions on flood mitigation.
Dodge is to file his recommendations before the province brings in its budget in October.
READ MORE: Study investigates disaster impact, resiliency of kids in 2013 floods
Nenshi emphasized he wants decisions soon.
“We now have all the information we need in order to make some really serious decisions on flood mitigation, and I think we share the goal of making the decisions quickly,” said the mayor.
But residents say those decisions can’t come soon enough.
“I’m tired of looking at the river every day to see if the water is up or the water is down,” said Maxim.
“I want to have a quality of life without that type of anxiety as to whether or not we are going to get flooded out again.”
Notley and Nenshi took a moment during their day together to show off some T-shirts emulating band Nine Inch Nails, replaced with the words, “Notley, Iveson, Nenshi – Building Alberta together.”
With files from Global’s Gary Bobrovitz
Comments