Hello Ward 8,
The middle of February marks four months since I began the role as Councillor. It has been a time full of learning, hard work, and a few surprises along the way (with many more to come, I’m sure). As I continue to settle in, I feel grateful for all the opportunities I’ve had to meet people who care about where we live and engage in meaningful discussions with Ward 8 residents.
In this month’s newsletter, you will find updates about several key issues affecting our Ward and our City. Things like pedestrian safety, infrastructure, and rezoning.
We had our first town hall on Sunday, January 25 where over 100 people joined us at the Sunalta Community Hub to talk about growth and rezoning. I truly enjoyed the chance to speak with people directly about how they are experiencing change in our neighbourhoods. You can find a summary of the comments we received on our website.
Community engagement is one of our top priorities and we will be hosting many more town halls, which we’re calling “A Date with Nate in Ward 8.” The next Date with Nate will be at the Marda Loop Community Association on March 5 and will also be focused on growth and rezoning. Future town halls will feature a variety of topics that are important to Ward 8 residents.
All this work wouldn’t be possible without my dedicated team, who many of you may have already met by email or in person. Executive Advisor Gabrielle Gonzaga, Community Liaison Sarah Ferguson, Planning and Growth Lead Ivan Osorio Avila, and Policy Lead Evan Galbraith. I couldn’t do it without them, and we’re all lucky to have their talents at work for our Ward.
I look forward to seeing many of you at the next town hall and chatting through email and telephone as I continue to catch up with all the messages I’ve received. Please don’t hesitate to reach out and stay warm as we hit another cold spell.
All the best, Nathaniel Schmidt Ward 8 Calgary City Councillor
Date with Nate in 8 On December 15, 2025, City Council voted to proceed with a Public Hearing on the repeal of city-wide rezoning, with a date now set for March 23, 2026. More information about Public Hearings on Planning Matters can be found on the City website. You can make a comment, or pre-register to address council by submitting through the online portal.
I know this is an issue important to many Ward 8 residents which is why our team is hosting a series of three townhalls on housing and rezoning. These are the first in an ongoing series of townhalls we plan to host over the next four years on all municipal issues titled “Ward 8 Date with Nate.” All Ward 8 Dates with Nate are an opportunity to ask questions, share your thoughts, and chat with my team and I in a relaxed setting. Our next Ward 8 Date with Nate will be March 5 in Marda Loop.
The next one will be March 18 with the location TBA. We are asking all those interested to RSVP at least 24 hours before the event to save your spot. Please use the link below for more details and to reserve your seat:
Ward 8 Events What We've Heard
Thank you to everyone who came out on January 25 to Sunalta and shared their experiences, concerns, and ideas about housing and growth in Calgary. The feedback reflects a wide range of perspectives, but several clear themes came through consistently: - People understand Calgary needs to grow
- An emphasis on context sensitive growth
- Infrastructure needs to keep up with development
- Community engagement feels late and uneven
- Design quality strongly influences support for growth
- Parks, trees, and green space are deeply valued
- Affordability is still out of reach for many
- People want fairer distribution of change
Overall, we heard a wide variety of feedback and ideas. Residents are asking for growth that is thoughtful, well-designed, fairly distributed, supported by infrastructure, and shaped with communities. Please read through the full summary on the event page
2026 Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacon Program
Thanks to your input, we’re making pedestrian crossings safer: Ward 8’s two newest Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacons are coming to 12 Ave/15 St SW and Royal Ave/8 St SW
Thank you to everyone who filled out our survey. These locations have been added to the City’s mobility work plan for 2026, with the aim to have them installed this year.
Read more about this council-directed project.
We are taking your feedback on other locations that could benefit from enhanced visibility and safety measures and will work with the city to see where future flashing beacons could go. If you see or experience any pedestrian crossing safety issues, please report to 311. The statistics provided through 311 helps to show these hot spots and for our office to push on getting them addressed. Snow Update
It is snowing in Calgary, with up to 15 cms of snowfall expected by Tuesday evening.
Before and during snowfall, the City's crews work around the clock, preparing equipment and materials, plowing through lanes, applying anti-icing agents to potential trouble spots like bridge decks and focusing on maintaining safe conditions on Calgary’s busiest routes per The City’s priority snow plan.
Beginning with the first trips of the day on Tuesday, February 17, all snow detours will be in effect on routes across the city for the morning commute.
More updates can be found on the City's Snow and ice clearing update webpage, including more snow clearing information for sidewalks and roads, road conditions, and how to report concerns. |
