Municipal Naming Public Engagement

.

Draft Policy Presentation & Survey

The in-person engagement for the Municipal Naming Project is now complete.

The final phase of engagement focuses on the recommended changes to the Naming Policy, which have been informed by resident and stakeholder feedback, extensive research across Canada, and collaborative conversations with municipal naming leaders and experts.

The Municipal Naming Project team has prepared a video presentation, detailing the results of public engagement and the draft Naming Policy. This presentation has been produced in lieu of public open house events, and your feedback on the draft Naming Policy may be provided in the dedicated survey (available from December 8 to 19). The survey is now closed and results are being analyzed.

The Municipal Naming Project team would like to thank all residents who have shared their feedback to date - we encourage you to view this video presentation to learn how public feedback shaped the draft policy.

Please keep an eye on this page for any future project updates.

A Message from Mayor Cathy Heron

Names of streets, parks and other municipal infrastructure are important. They help form our identity as a community and reflect our values as a community. The City of St. Albert is undertaking a review of our Municipal Naming Policy to identify potential changes to our current approach. City Council is committed to public engagement and has directed City staff to provide significant public participation opportunities on this important topic. I thank you for taking the time to visit this page, encourage you to learn more about this important topic through the resources provided, and invite you to attend one of our upcoming information sessions.

Cathy Heron, Mayor

About the Project

The City regularly reviews and updates its policies to ensure they are current, relevant, and reflective of our values. The City is currently reviewing its Municipal Naming Policy and wants to hear from our community. The Municipal Naming Policy should align with the City’s commitment to support diversity, inclusion and equity, and reflect the kind of community we want to live in.

The City of St. Albert has initiated a public participation process for the Municipal Naming Project. To begin, our project team will focus on community discussions around potential revisions to the Municipal Naming Policy. For example, the City could amend the policy to align with the community values that will be identified throughout the public participation process. The feedback received will also enable the City to develop an appropriate process for addressing renaming requests.

The current Naming Policy states: “At the discretion and authority of Council, names may be repealed or renamed under circumstances where the name may be associated or recognized with significant dishonour to the community, province, or nation.” We want to know what this means to you.

Administration will provide Council with a summary of what we heard during the public participation process, which Council will consider as part if its decision-making process on potential changes to the Municipal Naming Policy. The revised Municipal Naming Policy will focus on a clearly defined process for naming and renaming that is reflective of our community values, culture and traditions.

» Listen to a CBC interview about the project.

Important Project Context

Please read the following "Key Documents" to learn more and to provide greater context for this project:

The City of St. Albert has a unique history that holds relevancy to the Municipal Naming Project. To read a brief summary of how our City came to be, please view: The History of St. Albert (PDF).

Our City is located on very storied lands, and the first renaming that occurred here was around the time of settlement. To learn about the first trails of the land and how renaming has occurred over time, please view: The History of Renaming in St. Albert (PDF).

Cities across Canada are updating their Municipal Naming Policies and doing renaming work on all sorts of municipal assets. To read additional context about these projects, please view: Municipal Naming Projects Across the Country (PDF).

Bishop Grandin placenames have been under review by municipalities across Canada due to Grandin's instrumental role in the establishment of residential Schools. Our City was the site of two residential schools. To learn more about how this project is considering Grandin placenames, please view: Addressing Public Concerns About Grandin Placenames (PDF).

The City is aware that there are more names that may come under review during this project. To learn more about this, please view: Addressing Public Concerns About Other Placenames (PDF).

Please explore the following links to learn more about important topics related to this project:

• Residential Schools in St. Albert (External Website)
• Truth and Reconciliation Commission (External Website)

Our Engagement Process

The public participation opportunities will begin in August 2022 with numerous City-led events to provide information to the public on the Municipal Naming Policy. There will also be many opportunities for residents to provide their feedback on how the policy should be revised to reflect current community values. The City will reach out to many diverse stakeholders and rightsholders to help guide the project. Focus Groups will be established and will meet three times over the project’s timeframe.

This City-led initiative will engage with Indigenous community members throughout the project for guidance and input. To begin the public participation process, registration will open for the public to attend a virtual information session, which will be held in mid-September. A comprehensive survey will be shared with participants after the sessions, and the feedback collected will be used to inform future events for the project. As well, sounding boards will be established at various public areas in the city to get feedback from residents passing by.

Once feedback is collected through the sounding boards, the information sessions, and the surveys, the next phase of public participation will continue in October, November and early December. This phase will include larger-scale public events, the details of which are still being determined by our project team and will be released at the end of September 2022.

Lastly, all feedback will be compiled in a What We Heard Report and a secondary report containing policy recommendations for Council’s consideration will be provided in Winter 2022-2023.

Please consult the “Key Dates” section of this page to view the public participation opportunities in which you are invited to take part.

Virtual Information Sessions

Six virtual public information sessions were held covering project details and current approaches to municipal naming across the country. They were intended to discuss frequent questions and concerns, and gather feedback to guide future engagement opportunities for the project.