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Calgary landlord apologizes after ripping down Alberta Party candidate’s election sign

A Calgary landlord named Steve (right) apologized to Alberta Party candidate Gar Gar for tearing down his election sign earlier this week. Courtesy: Gar Gar

Finally, a positive Alberta election story during one of the most divisive campaigns in the province’s history.

After a video posted Thursday showed a Calgary landlord named Steve ripping down an election sign on his lawn, Steve apologized to Gar Gar, the Alberta Party candidate for Calgary-East, over an hour-long coffee.

“He came out and said simply that he just had a bad day and I was in the wrong place at the wrong time,” Gar said Saturday.

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The discussion quickly turned to how they could work together to improve the community.

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“We are here to build a community, not to break it down,” Gar said. “I think it’s about meeting in the middle. I think it’s not about judgement.”

Gar said the open conversation they had was about bridging communication channels.

“I also gave him an opportunity to ask him as a constituent, ‘What would you like me to work on?’ So it turned from a bad situation to a good situation — it’s about giving a person an opportunity,” he said.

Gar appreciates that Steve was accountable for his actions.

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While Section 135.5(1) of Alberta’s Election Act says landlords cannot ban election signs from rented property, the size and type of signs can be regulated by landlords.

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