By the time this comes out it will be July and summer will be in full swing. The McCauley Community League will be hosting a couple of Family Potlucks in Caboto Park on July 7 and August 25. On August 11 we’ll have a Block to Block Meet-Up at Taipan Café. Check our website and Facebook, or drop us an email or phone call for further details.

Several executive members have been busily knocking doors throughout the neighbourhood as part of the League’s Block to Block campaign. We’ve brought in a huge number of new League members and made new friends throughout the neighbourhood. Don’t forget that if you become a League member you get free access to the newly renovated Commonwealth Recreation Centre every Saturday from 5-7 p.m. League memberships expire at the end of August, but don’t worry, your League board will be out on a membership drive to sign you up again. As part of our Block to Block and communication strategies we are also looking for your McCauley stories, both great and not so great, to share with the community and with the City when needed. If you’ve got a local story let us know by email!

Potentially exciting changes are coming to the City’s Zoning and Housing branches in the very near future with the Congregate Living Zoning modifications and proposals by the Housing Branch going to Executive Committee in the last few months. Current indications are that the efforts of your community league and some of our neighbours have resulted in redefinitions in the Zoning Bylaw and funding policy changes that may result in more responsible and sustainable allocation of housing dollars and projects. Draft bylaws and reports to Executive Committee will be linked to our Facebook and website as they become available.

In a similar vein, Sustainable Development has proposed several changes to the Zoning Bylaw as a result of suggestions by the Edmonton Arts Council. Members of the arts community were concerned with some of the restrictions the current definitions can cause in access to small and unique venue spaces, resale of used items, and related issues. The proposals brought forward as of this writing are way too broad and permissive and have the potential to do a lot of damage to neighbourhoods and commercial districts. Several community leagues throughout the city are working together to create the changes that will facilitate the needed changes while protecting the interests of neighbourhoods and business zones.

We’ve also discovered that while we are receiving a 10% discount on membership to City facilities like the Commonwealth Rec Centre with a community league membership, employees of companies who enroll are receiving a 20% corporate discount with no pay in. In the next few months your league will be demanding an explanation for this from both the City and the EFCL.

In June, the proposed designs for the new Arena project were presented for public consultation. Of greatest concern to the League’s Zoning members was the integration of the Arena with the surrounding community and the plans for the Arena Entertainment District and how this would integrate with our neighbourhood. These questions have not been answered. Of course, the other major issue that remains unanswered is who and how this will be paid for and just what the actual cost of the project will be. The $450 million price tag is for the Arena only and does not include semi-public elements such as the building’s LRT entrance, pedway, winter garden, or community rink.

League memberships expire at the end of August, but don’t worry, your League board will be out on a membership drive to sign you up again.

Some of you may have noticed a plastic Quonset structure was attached to the Univer Bottle Depot on 111 Avenue in May and June. This was an illegal structure with no permits and has been removed. Further issues with the structure and operations have been raised by a collective group of local Leagues and neighbours. The most recent conversation is that they may be moving to another more appropriate and properly zoned location in the near future.

Once again, we lost our SDAB bid to appeal the Ambrose Place project on 106 Avenue. The written decision, linked on our Facebook and website, was large and detailed. Serious concerns exist regarding the reasons for the decision and in regards to the accuracy of the record represented in this decision. We are currently reviewing the written decision and considering what our next actions will be.

We would love to hear from you! Email info@mccauley.info, find us on Facebook: McCauley Community League, or give us a ring: (780) 428-5332.