Economy top public concern for next council

Lower taxes, support for business top priorities list for after 2021 election

The next city council elected in October 2021 should focus on growing business and the economy, new polling of Calgarians suggests.

The results come from an online panel survey by polling firm Leger from Oct. 2 to 5. Twenty-two per cent of the 500 respondents from Calgary list support for business and economic growth as the No. 1 priority for the city's next council.

The polling comes a year before Calgarians head to the ballot box on Oct. 18, 2021, in an economic climate battered by a crash in oil prices coupled with the COVID-19 pandemic.

Economic concerns have persisted since long before the novel coronavirus, said Ian Large, Leger executive vice-president.

“These were conversations that were happening before the pandemic — acres upon acres of empty office space, layoffs in the oil sector, more layoffs of the oil sector in the past couple of months,” Large said. “Throw in closing the economy, restaurants, stores, all that pressure on the economy is beyond council's ability.”

The economic focus continued with other priorities identified by Calgarians. Lowering taxes and reducing spending were the second- and third-highest priorities Calgarians have for the next council, polling found.

Large said this aligns with other poll findings, including one in which only a third of Calgarians gave the current city council a positive rating on its handling of the municipal budget, with fewer than three per cent of respondents saying the city's record was “excellent.”

Calgary Chamber of Commerce interim CEO Murray Sigler said the survey results, particularly about what Calgarians want from their next council, echo long-standing business concerns.

“It's not surprising, given what all our businesses are facing. Big and small businesses alike are facing a lot of pressures. Everything has changed, and everything is not going to go back to the way it was before,” Sigler said. “Our business community grasped that pre-pandemic, and I think they grasp it even more post-pandemic.”

Calgarians' perceptions of city council's handling of the economy have improved during the COVID-19 pandemic, Leger found. Half of Calgarians gave the city a positive review for its economic response during COVID-19, compared to 42 per cent for its handling of the economy before the pandemic began.

But that opinion could turn in the coming months as council decides how to pay for the cost of the pandemic, Large warned.

“The pandemic, of course, has just thrown everybody sideways and knocked everybody around, and so the fact that (council) is getting high marks for (their response) is a real positive,” he said.

“It's costing money at the same time. The city is not earning (as much) money from transit or recreation facilities or sports field rentals or whatever it is. And they're spending like crazy on these initiatives. It's going to come home to roost.”

Sigler lauded Calgary's business community as resilient and said it would manage the next year much as it managed the first seven months of the pandemic. He praised council decisions, including implementing a mandatory-mask bylaw, for helping protect businesses.

But more relief is needed from all levels of government to keep businesses on their feet, Sigler said, including longer-term, sustainable solutions such as reforming commercial property tax rates.

The chamber plans to meet with mayoral and council candidates before the election to pitch business-friendly policy.

“We need help in 2021. We need help beyond the next few weeks, the next few months,” he said. “We just want to know what (candidates') thinking is so we can be supportive and provide our thoughts. We won't be supporting any candidates, but we'll be supporting positions.”