On April 21, the McCauley Community League held its Annual General Meeting at the Edmonton Intercultural Centre. A number of residents and League members eligible to vote attended the event to review the year’s accomplishments and elect new board members. The annual event marks another successful year of community programs and events intended to bring McCauley together and promote an inclusive and vibrant inner city community.

The League held a number of gatherings over the past year. Among the highlights are celebrations like the Fall and Spring Fiestas and Community Conversations such as the Community Development Corporation Discussion about what type of projects the community would like to see.

The League also promotes and supports recreation and sports programs such as soccer, which saw about 90 kids registered for our non-competitive “Family Friendly” soccer program. In 2017, kids played one night a week during May and June. This year, the program will run on Wednesdays in July and August because Giovanni Caboto fields will be under maintenance for the month of June.

Additionally, the McCauley Rink had another successful season with about 2,000 people using the rink from November to March. Special events/activities included the annual McCauley Cup cops vs. kids game of shinny hockey, the Learn to Skate program hosted by the City of Edmonton, and the annual Family Day festivities and skating party.

The League also engaged in a number of civic concerns this year such as working with the City on the rezoning plans for Church Street and shaping solutions to on street parking in the area. We worked with other partners on opposing a new gaming and liquor licence for the new business at the former Santo’s location, as well as community impacts of the Rogers Place arena. We spoke to City Council about medically supervised injection sites, the number of pharmacies in McCauley, and redevelopment of the Remand Centre. The League appealed development permits for increased emergency mats and the proposed new Herb Jamieson Centre.

League board members sit on the advisory committee for supervised consumption sites, community impacts of the Rogers Centre, Recover (the City’s inner city wellness initiative), and the community safety committee.

The League Board and the community wishes to thank those retiring this year for their years of service and commitment to the community, namely Phil O’Hara, Rosalie Gelderman, and Albert Bernard.

The following Community League members will continue to serve on the board: Shauna Forsyth, Dan Glugosh, Jill Hoselton, Grace Kuipers, Greg Lane, Darren Pielak, Adam Snider, and Aya Yashima. We also welcome the following new members to the Board: Lily Mounma, Todd Homan, Jordynn Vis, and Linn Cardinal.

Coming next month, meet the new board and learn about some of the exciting new programming and events planned for 2018.