Public Hearings enable members of the public to provide direct input to Council. You may choose to submit written comments and/or attend the Public Hearing. All visitors to City of Red Deer facilities are expected to follow the appropriate policies and procedures to ensure the safety and security of everyone working in and visiting our sites. This includes respectful remote participation in meetings (e.g. phone).

Written Submission:
Members of public wishing to submit written comments may do so in one of the following ways:

• Online
  Complete and submit the Public Hearing Submission Form;

• Email
  Email your comments to publichearings@reddeer.ca

• Drop off comments
  Drop off a written copy of your submission at City Hall (4914 48 Avenue) during business hours to the attention of Red Deer City Council c/o Clerk, Legal & Legislative Services; or

• Mail
  Mail your submission to:
  Red Deer City Council c/o Clerk
  Legal & Legislative Services
  Box 5008
  Red Deer, AB T4N 3T4

For more information on providing written comments, please visit the Submissions page.

If you have questions about participation or need additional information on Public Hearing procedures, contact Legal & Legislative Services at 403-342-8132 or email publichearings@reddeer.ca.

The list of speakers is not publicly available prior to the meeting. The names of speakers will be publicly available in the Minutes following the meeting.

The speaking order will be determined by the Chair or delegate. For example, the Chair may determine that those in favour of the bylaw will speak before those who are opposed or vice versa; or speakers may be heard in the order that they registered (first come, first served).

If a speaker is absent when it is their turn to speak, City Council will hear from the next person on the list.

Regardless of the speaking order, the Chair will, prior to proceeding, ask if anyone else from the public wishes to speak to Council on the matter in order to ensure that everyone who wishes to speak has had an opportunity to do so.

Effective May 9, 2022, you may make a presentation or speak for up to 5 minutes. The 5 minutes does not include the time to respond to questions from Members of Council. You may only speak about the issue that is being considered at the Public Hearing. Following your presentation, any Member of Council may ask you questions.

Yes, you may choose to speak for yourself or on someone else’s behalf. Please note that effective May 9, 2022, each speaker has 5 minutes to speak regardless of how many people they are speaking for.

No, you only have 5 minutes to make a presentation.

During the Public Hearing, you present your comments to City Council on how you are affected by the subject matter that Council is considering. There is no opportunity to rebut comments made by other speakers.

The Public Hearing is City Council’s opportunity to hear from anyone who is affected by the proposed bylaw.

You can let Council know your comments in any of the following ways:

• Online
  Completing and submitting the Public Hearing Submission Form.

• Email
  Emailing your comments to publichearings@reddeer.ca.

• Drop off comments
  Dropping off a written copy of your submission at City Hall (4914 48 Avenue) during business hours to the attention of Red Deer City Council c/o Clerk, Legal & Legislative Services.

• Mail
  Mailing your submission to:
  Red Deer City Council c/o Clerk
  Legal & Legislative Services
  Box 5008
  Red Deer, AB T4N 3T4

• Remote Participation
  Participate in the Public Hearing by phone (information on how to participate by phone is advertised in the Upcoming Public Hearings section specific to the matter you wish to comment on).

Written comments must be received by the Clerk, Legal & Legislative Services, by the deadline posted in the advertising for the Public Hearing in order to be included in the published Council Agenda. All upcoming Public Hearings are advertised in the newspaper and in the Upcoming Public Hearings.

Submissions received after the advertised deadline will not be accepted (see Upcoming Public Hearings for deadline information). The Clerk will contact the person who sent in the late written submission and advise them that the written submission will not be distributed to Members of Council or be made part of the Agenda.

If you missed the submission deadline, you, or your delegate, can still participate in the Public Hearing by presenting your comments directly to Council during the Public Hearing.

Yes, you can share your comments with City Council even if you are not able to attend the meeting. The Public Hearing is City Council’s opportunity to hear from anyone who is affected by the proposed bylaw. You can let Council know your comments in any of the following ways:

• Complete and submit the Public Hearing Submission Form;
• Email your comments to publichearings@reddeer.ca;
• Mail your submission to City of Red Deer Council c/o Clerk, Legal & Legislative Services, The City of Red Deer, Box 5008, Red Deer, AB T4N 3T4; or
• Drop off a written copy of your submission at City Hall (4914 48 Avenue) during business hours to the attention of City of Red Deer Council c/o Clerk, Legal & Legislative Services.

If you have a presentation, you may make a request to the Clerk to utilize technology to show images, videos, presentations and other visual aids during a Public Hearing.

The request must be received by the Clerk by the end of the business day prior to the commencement of the meeting during which the Public Hearing will be held so that the Clerk can make any required accommodations and communicate with you to how your request will be accommodated.

The Clerk will make reasonable efforts to accommodate the request provided the necessary technology is available for use in Council Chambers or at the location of the meeting. The Clerk will advise you if your request cannot be accommodated.

Submissions from members of public normally include information such as name, address, phone numbers, and possibly opinions and other personal information.

Submissions received from members of public will appear in the published Council Agenda in the same format that they are received by the Clerk and personal information will not be removed from the submission.

All materials submitted for Council consideration at the Public Hearing must form part of the public record and will be available for public viewing (Meetings & Agendas).

Unsigned or anonymous letters or emails that do not provide a proper name for the party sending the email will not be accepted as there is no way for Council to properly weigh the contents of the letter.

If your submission is marked “in confidence” or “confidential”, the Clerk will contact you to discuss the following options with you:

1. withdraw your submission; or
2. submit a revised submission prior to the submission deadline on the subject matter; or
3. have your original submission included in the Agenda with the notation that the submission is not “confidential”.

The Clerk may withhold a public submission from the Council Agenda if the Clerk, after consulting legal counsel, concludes the submission contains:

(a) hate speech;
(b) discriminatory language; or
(c) defamatory language.

If your submission is being withheld as a result of hate speech, discriminatory or defamatory language, the Clerk will contact you and advise that the submission is being withheld; however, you, or your delegate, can attend the Public Hearing to present your comments directly to Council during the Public Hearing.