May 6, 2025 City Council Meeting

A motion by Councillor Shelley Bermanski had been tabled until this meeting. An alternative of the motion was presented, discussed, and voted on:
That the name removal/renaming process within policy CCC05, sections 41 to 50 be suspended until a review of the policy is completed and revised to align with improved processes regarding community support for naming consideration requests and that administration provide a revised policy to SCOW by quarter 3 of 2026.

The motion was defeated in a vote of 4 – 3, with councillors Bermanski, Hughes and MacKay having voted in favour of it.

Previous Call to Action

UPDATE: A member of the Save Grandin Action Committee officially filed an appeal regarding the renaming of Grandin Park. As many of you know, preserving the name Bishop Vital Grandin is important to our community’s history and identity. It is a name that carries deep significance for many residents, and we believe it must be honored.

This **preliminary jurisdictional hearing** will now take place on **June 4th at 6:00 p.m.**
Your support during this hearing is crucial as we come together to advocate for our shared values and history.

Here’s how you can help:

1. **Attend the Hearing:** Your presence at the hearing will demonstrate our collective commitment to this cause. Showing up in support amplifies our community voice and reinforces the importance of this matter.
It will take place in Council Chambers, 3rd Floor, St. Albert Place, 5 St. Anne Street, St. Albert.

2. **Spread the Word:** Please share this information with fellow residents, friends, and family members who may not be aware of the hearing. The more supporters we have, the stronger our message will be.

3. **Share Your Stories:** If you have personal connections to Bishop Grandin or the name Grandin Park, we would love to hear your testimonials. These personal stories can powerfully highlight our community’s sentiment at the hearing.

4. **Email Submissions:** If you have any input, comments, or stories you wish to share, please send them to: marksold@hotmail.com ASAP.

5. **Stay Engaged:** If you have any questions, concerns, or thoughts on how we can effectively present our case, please feel free to reach out to Mark. Your input is invaluable and will strengthen our collective efforts.

Additional research is being concluded, which may allow this issue to be put before the courts prior to the planned September 1st, 2025 name-change date.

NOTE: You can also direct family and friends to our website: https://fightforgrandin.info/ to to have them follow along and sign-up to receive our updates.

Thank you for your unwavering support as we work to ensure that our voices are heard in this important matter. Together, we can make a significant difference in preserving our community’s identity.

Subscribe to Our Updates:

HERE ARE TWO OF THE PRESENTATIONS
TO CITY COUNCIL
ON MARCH 18
2025

NO SURPRISE HERE…

You can watch the meeting HERE.

Our first media release was sent to St. Albert Gazette…

Click here to open a PDF version of our media release.

Gazette’s article of March 13, 2025

Notice…

The Saving Grandin Action Committee
has released documents related to this “fight.”

What are the effects of a name change?

The proposed name change is not simply a legislative decision which has no direct effect on Grandin residents. If the name is changed, they will have to wade through the process of changing all the personal I.D., their insurance coverage contact information, vehicle registration, membership cards, credit cards, social security information, and more. Any businesses that may accept the name change could suffer financial harm from loss of clientele and changes to their promotional materials.

NEW HARMS...This is a decision which is going to affect the lives of every adult living in Grandin Park. This proposed name change will negate their heritage, their sense of community built up over decades, and their sense of being connected (roots) to their homes / addresses / community.

How can I let Council know my thoughts?

Initially, residents who wished to provide input on the potential plebiscite only (not the process of renaming or the possibility of renaming), were able to address Council at the March 4 meeting.

We asked you to register to speak to City Council

NOTE: As of 8:30 a.m. on Saturday, March 15th, the City website was showing 13 residents
who had registered to speak to City Council at their March 18th meeting.
CLICK HERE to see the list.
A total of 26 members of the public addressed City Council on March 18th..

You can review the Mar. 18th meeting agenda and documents

Pertinant document presented to Council on March 18th:

CLICK ON THE IMAGE ABOVE TO READ THE LEGISLATION TEXT
“REQUEST FOR RENAMING“

CITY COUNCIL HAS APPROVED,
GRANDIN ASSETS WILL BECOME
“THE GARDENS”
AS OF 1 SEPTEMBER 2025

CLICK HERE to link to the details of this past meeting.
(Select March 18th and “drill down” to the specifics.)
NOTE THAT DIRECT LINKS TO THE ATTACHMENTS BELOW ARE NOT ENABLED.

Title:

Request to Rename Grandin Municipal Assets Presented by: Suzanne Ruegg, Planner and Paul Pearson, Director, Communications & Public Affairs

Attachments:

1. Attachment 1 – Municipal Naming Policy C-CC-05, 2. Attachment 2 – Admin Backgrounder – Naming Committee, 3. Attachment 3 – Background Information, 4. Attachment 4 – What We Heard Report, 5. Attachment 5 – Letter from Grand Chief Desjarlais, 6. Attachment 6 – Resident Checklist, 7. Attachment 7 – G Names Reserve List

Find out more…

NOTE: The City of Winnipeg did some renaming in 2023/24.  Bishop Grandin Boulevard is now called Abinojii Mikanah, which translates to “the children’s way/road” in Anishinaabemowin. Bishop Grandin Trail received the name Awasisak Mēskanôw — “the children’s road” in Ininimowin, or Cree. Grandin Street, which runs for a single block from Taché Avenue to St. Joseph Street in the north St. Boniface area, is now Taapweewin, which means “truth” in Michif. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/bishop-grandin-renaming-abinojii-mikanah-1.7242610

Another perspective is provided in this True North piece: https://tnc.news/2023/11/14/cancelling-of-bishop-grandin1/

True North did a story on the costs: https://tnc.news/2023/11/15/winnipeg-taxpayers-bill-rename-streets/ 
They budgeted over $300K, which doesn’t reflect the costs to individuals and companies.

What costs will the City of St. Albert and residents experience?

On the issue of “harms”

We all need to understand and acknowledge that our First Nations and Metis peoples have, in the past, experienced harms through the Canadian Government’s decision to establish residential schools. When the Truth and Reconciliation process held one of its national events in Edmonton in 2014, Archbishop Richard Smith offered a public apology on behalf of the Catholic Bishops of Alberta and the Northwest Territories for the harm done to students in residential schools by members of the Catholic Church. (Link here.)

We also acknowledge that there are present harms that reopen and keep the wounds of the past “alive” for some of those affected. However, it should be understood that future harms are going to result from the renaming of the city assets – by striking the name of a city founder and prominent member of the clergy, and by “uprooting” those who live in the Grandin neighbourhood and have established a long-term community with each family’s history going back decades.

As stated by a local Metis elder, “enough is enough”…and “the name change, if approved, won’t reduce the past harm nor contribute to reconciliation”; it will “only contribute to more harm for those who live in Grandin!”
CLICK HERE to read an excellent article about reconciliation and forgiveness.

Another Canadian Church Burnt – Suspected Arson

The Anglican / Lutheran shared church in Carman, Manitoba was apparently “torched” on March 13th, 2025.
CLICK HERE to read about it and see the Rebel News coverage.

That makes over 100 Canadian churches burnt, and another 300 vandalized, over the past several years.

The legacy media generally won’t even mention it; and (at the time) Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was asked about the attacks, and he shrugged it off saying: “It’s understandable.”

What are we doing?