I’m Myke Atkinson, Independent Ward 7 Candidate: Ask Me Anything

[RoadGame]

So I'm actually in Myke's ward and while I appreciate the humour I have been giving some thought to a question for him.

Briefly for context, I'm in a part of the ward that has undergone some of the most intense densification. I don't live in one of the 4 or 8 plexes, but I support the redevelopment. I happen to think blanket rezoning should only apply within a reasonable walking distance of LRT lines, which includes my 'hood, but that's a different matter.

Anyway, as someone in a redev hot spot, one of the issues I am noticing is people parking too close to the intersection, especially where there are 2-way stops. When you're the stopped vehicle, it's nearly impossible to get enough of a sightline to be confident about entering the intersection safely. I think it would be helpful if the city painted curbs in the areas around intersections where you're not allowed to park (e.g. 5m from stop signs) to make it easier for people to comply with the rules. I'd also be in favour of stepped up enforcement to follow where curbs have been painted.

Anyway I know this is a super tactical suggestion/question compared with some of the bigger-picture questions people are asking, but I'm trying to highlight that even people who generally support density can see that there are some pain points with implementation. I wish we had more nuance in discussion of these kinds of things, so 'be the change' etc.

Best of luck to you, sir.

[MykeAtkinson]

Originally Posted by CroFlames

I don't live in Ward 7, but what are your plans for the drug abuse problem in the ward and in the city?

I understand no big city is without this problem, but as Calgary continues to expand, I fear we are heading for a Vancouver-style Hastings street.

Not in the Ward? Am I still supposed to care what you think?

You are right that no large city is immune to the challenges of addiction and drug use, but how we respond to it makes all the difference. What we are seeing on Calgary’s streets today is the result of a toxic drug supply, housing insecurity, and major gaps in mental health and addiction supports. Simply moving people along or increasing enforcement does not solve the issue.

My approach focuses on addressing the root causes while improving safety for everyone. That means:

• Partnering with the provincial and federal governments to expand access to treatment, mental health care, and harm reduction services (many of these responsibilities fall under health care and provincial jurisdiction).
• Reinvesting in affordable and supportive housing, because it has proven through Housing First models that it is far less costly to house people than to manage homelessness through emergency services. We can care properly for people and save money.
• Strengthening community safety programs that feature outreach workers like social workers and PACT (Police and Crisis Team), so people get help instead of cycling through hospitals, jails, or shelters.
• Explore rolling mental health response into our existing emergency response services. We didn't always have ambulances, but at some point re realized we could do better than loading people with broken legs into the back of police cruiser. We need to meet this moment and need similarly.
• Using vacant city buildings as community hubs where residents can access wraparound supports like job training, counseling, and connection to services.

We cannot allow any part of Calgary to become a place of deep and visible suffering like Hastings Street. The best prevention is early, coordinated action that makes sure people have housing, care, and a path to stability long before they end up in crisis or in the depths of addiction.

[CorsiHockeyLeague]

Originally Posted by Parallex

3: Winterizing green spaces: Do you have any thoughts on ways City Hall can increase public use of it's many park and playground spaces that (IMO) are mostly unused during the colder months.

This is an interesting question for a candidate running to serve the ward that contains Shouldice and is on the doorstep of Dale Hodges where many Ward 7 residents spend time.

Also would be interested in his thoughts about how to continue to improve the main Montgomery strip near Notable, etc... some revitalization of the sidewalk and bike path through that area has occurred, which creates an opportunity to make a nicer sort of "main street" area, but it's not there yet.

[MykeAtkinson]

Originally Posted by troutman

I can attest Myke was a great leader and manager at CJSW.

https://cjsw.com/program/2025-munici...tion-coverage/

I like Myke!

Thanks! I like you too!

Originally Posted by troutman

How do you feel about Cowboys taking over Shaw Millennium Park?

Millennium Park is one of the only green spaces in the downtown west end, and it was handed over for a private event without real consultation. I don't believe that should have happened, and the public still doesn't know the details of the agreement. Getting this right going forward is super important so that we minimize the impacts for the next nine years of the sponsorship deal.

Originally Posted by troutman

Do the Stampeders need a new stadium, with contributions from the City?

I support the Stampeders as part of Calgary’s culture and history, but I am cautious about major public funding for private sports facilities. The City should focus its investments on infrastructure that benefits everyone, like recreation centers, transit, parks, and affordable housing. I would much rather dedicate sporting dollars into community sporting facilities like the Multisport Fieldhouse proposed right next door to McMahon. If there is a proposal for a new stadium, it should only move forward if the public contribution is transparent, limited, and tied to clear community benefits such as year-round public use or affordable access for local events.

Originally Posted by troutman

Should Calgary seek future Winter Olympics?

I love what the Olympics once meant for Calgary, but I do not think another bid should be a priority right now. Our focus should be on getting our own house in order: things like housing affordability, climate resilience, safer streets, and downtown revitalization. If we make Calgary a city that works better for its residents, we will naturally be ready to host world-class events in the future. Right now, our energy and resources are better spent on local people and communities.

If we do ever host the Olympic Games again, I strongly believe we should look at revisiting the 1988 logo. It is absolutely gorgeous.

[MykeAtkinson]

Originally Posted by PaperBagger'14

Do you have any opinions of the candidates in ward 12? Bonus points if you use humorous gifs in your answer

Sorry, but I barely have enough time for Ward 7.

[MykeAtkinson]

Originally Posted by Cowboy89

What in your mind are the core responsibilities of the municipality of Calgary and in what order of priority?

I see the City of Calgary’s core responsibilities falling into three big buckets:

How we get around.
That means maintaining sidewalks and roads, improving public transit, and building safer streets for people walking and biking. Mobility is the foundation of a functional city, and it shapes everything from affordability to quality of life.

What we build.
This includes housing, infrastructure, parks, recreation facilities, and the planning decisions that guide growth. The City’s job is to make sure development is sustainable, affordable, and supports strong neighbourhoods.

City vibrancy.
This covers how we create spaces that feel alive and safe — everything from small business vitality to community events, arts, culture, and lighting. It also means addressing the root causes of crime and ensuring people feel secure in public spaces.

These three areas are very related and getting all three of them right is crucial to having a livable city, so I'm opting out on your ask to rank their priority.

[The Yen Man]

Good on you Myke for taking the time to engage our community. I'm in Ward 2, but if I was in Ward 7, I'd definitely consider voting for you.

[Sr. Mints]

Hey Myke.

Vecova’s recent closure demonstrates how vulnerable important community services are when provincial and federal funds fail to materialize. Given your stated commitment to reinvest in innercity infrastructure, would you support increasing the City of Calgary’s financial commitment (beyond its current level) to ensure similar essential facilities aren’t lost?

And if so, how would you propose the city raise or reprioritize funds to do so?”

[jwslam]

Originally Posted by RoadGame

So I'm actually in Myke's ward and while I appreciate the humour I have been giving some thought to a question for him.

Briefly for context, I'm in a part of the ward that has undergone some of the most intense densification. I don't live in one of the 4 or 8 plexes, but I support the redevelopment. I happen to think blanket rezoning should only apply within a reasonable walking distance of LRT lines, which includes my 'hood, but that's a different matter.

Anyway, as someone in a redev hot spot, one of the issues I am noticing is people parking too close to the intersection, especially where there are 2-way stops. When you're the stopped vehicle, it's nearly impossible to get enough of a sightline to be confident about entering the intersection safely. I think it would be helpful if the city painted curbs in the areas around intersections where you're not allowed to park (e.g. 5m from stop signs) to make it easier for people to comply with the rules. I'd also be in favour of stepped up enforcement to follow where curbs have been painted.

Anyway I know this is a super tactical suggestion/question compared with some of the bigger-picture questions people are asking, but I'm trying to highlight that even people who generally support density can see that there are some pain points with implementation. I wish we had more nuance in discussion of these kinds of things, so 'be the change' etc.

Best of luck to you, sir.

Not W7 here, but I have similar gripes in my neighbourhood of bad parkers. Realistically to your suggestion though, I can't name any place in Calgary I've seen with painted street curbs... so to introduce something new probably won't blow over well. Agree that enforcement is lackluster... I can call at 9am and my "low priority" call won't get attended to until 5pm when the problem is long gone.

[Fuzz]

Painted curbs are super ugly though.

[calumniate]

What do you think of Lake Bonavista and dogs in general?

[TheIronMaiden]

Myke, How do you think #####posting on the internet has impacted democracy?

Sorry, let me rephrase that as an ethical question. Is it wrong that I think #####posting about politics is funny?

[RoadGame]

I don't want to derail the thread with a debate over parking or painted curbs, but I will say that as luck would have it I got to meet Myke on my doorstep last night and have a good chat. It confirmed all the impressions I had developed from reading his materials, watching his videos and watching a couple of Ward 7 debates.

Most excited I have been about a councillor candidate in a long time.

I really hope centrists and progressives in our ward can rally around him, even if they had been leaning towards one of the other candidates prior to this.

[wireframe]

Originally Posted by RoadGame

I don't want to derail the thread with a debate over parking or painted curbs, but I will say that as luck would have it I got to meet Myke on my doorstep last night and have a good chat. It confirmed all the impressions I had developed from reading his materials, watching his videos and watching a couple of Ward 7 debates.

Most excited I have been about a councillor candidate in a long time.

I really hope centrists and progressives in our ward can rally around him, even if they had been leaning towards one of the other candidates prior to this.

I couldn't agree more. Myke Atkinson is the most exciting candidate I've seen at any level. I took Monday off work to volunteer getting the vote out.

[MykeAtkinson]

Originally Posted by Parallex

1: Will you support and vote (should it come up in a motion) in favor of maintaining R-CG as the default zoning? If no, how would you mitigate the continuation of sprawl amid the increasing population? and how would you replace the federal housing funding that is contingent on zoning reform?

I would support maintaining R-CG as the default zoning. Repealing it would be a huge step backward for Calgary. For too long, inner-city neighbourhoods like those in Ward 7 have carried the brunt of redevelopment while sprawl on the city’s edges has continued to drain public funds.

Keeping R-CG in place helps share growth more fairly across the city and makes it possible for new housing to be built in every community, not just the ones already under pressure. It also keeps us eligible for federal housing funding, which is essential to tackling affordability and supporting new infrastructure.

If we repealed R-CG, housing would become even more expensive, population growth would push further into undeveloped land, and Calgary would lose access to hundreds of millions in federal funding. That is not sustainable.

Originally Posted by Parallex

2: In my opinion CPS has always suffered from a lack of suitable/stringent civilian oversight with the Commission seemingly (at least publically) serving to mostly just rubber-stamp the decisions of the uniformed brass. If you are elected would you stand for being one of council's representatives on the Commission? If 'yes' will you commit to providing stringent (and public) oversight and if 'no' would you commit to voting for someone who will? I distinctly remember a previous Commission telling the Police to do something... the police refused on the grounds that it needed to do member consultation first, continued to do nothing, and then had a tantrum when they were told to do it again... this is not how that relationship should function. The service answers to the public it's not an entity that can be answerable only to itself.

I agree with you that meaningful civilian oversight of Calgary Police Service is essential. The Commission should not simply sign off on internal decisions — it should provide real accountability on behalf of the public.

I would be open to serving as one of council’s representatives on the Calgary Police Commission, but I would rather support appointing councillors who will take that role seriously and not shy away from public scrutiny or reform. I have a number of other areas of reform I would like to address and need to be realistic about my capacity and the effort required to do a good job with such an important portfolio.

Originally Posted by Parallex

3: Winterizing green spaces: Do you have any thoughts on ways City Hall can increase public use of it's many park and playground spaces that (IMO) are mostly unused during the colder months.

Love this question. Other "winter cities" like Edmonton, Winnipeg, and Montreal have shown that parks can thrive year-round with the right design and programming. I love things like the Warming Huts competition.

Calgary should follow their lead by adding things like lighting, fire pits, and windbreaks, and by supporting small winter events, skating rinks, and markets that bring people together. We're doing some of these activations already and people really seem to love them (a personal favourite is the skating paths and Crokicurl in North Glenmore Park).

We can also take advantage of Calgary’s chinooks by being ready to activate spaces responsively with the weather — when it warms up, pop-up events, markets, and performances can make our parks feel alive and take advantage of this unique weather feature of our city.

Originally Posted by Parallex

4: If you were on City Council last session how would you have voted when they voted on the "arena deal" and why? As this effectively amounts to the subsidization of a private business, more broadly speaking how do you feel about City Hall subsidizing private for-profit entities with taxpayer money? On a related note... will you also commit to vigorously opposing making any decisions of similar or larger scale without significant public consultation and commit to never having such a decision being made in-camera?

I would not have supported the arena deal as it was passed. It put too much public money at risk for the benefit of a private business, with limited return to residents. If taxpayer funds are involved, there needs to be clear, measurable public benefit like community amenities or shared public space.

Too many major decisions in Calgary, including the recent Cowboys takeover of Millennium Park, have been made behind closed doors without real community consultation. That cannot continue.

Originally Posted by Parallex

5: Finally, an oldie but a goodie... You're in a fight to the death, 1 horse-sized duck or 100 duck-sized horses?

100 duck-sized horses every time. I believe in the power of the masses. ✊

[MykeAtkinson]

Originally Posted by FacePaint

Are you concerned about vote splitting in Ward 7? Do you endorse anyone for mayor?

I am concerned about vote splitting in Ward 7. We saw what happened in 2021 when the progressive vote was divided and Terry Wong won. That is why my focus has been on building a campaign with the reach, momentum, and organization to unite progressive voters behind one candidate who can win and deliver the leadership Ward 7 deserves. I'm feeling optimistic that we have done the work and put in the effort to make that happen.

As for the mayoral race, I am running an independent campaign for Ward 7 and I am not endorsing anyone for mayor. My focus is entirely on representing this ward and ensuring residents have strong, independent leadership at City Hall and I'll do that with whoever takes the mayor seat.

[MykeAtkinson]

Originally Posted by Jbo

Im in Ward 1, but I have yet to see any canidate provide me with a solid answer on infrastructure concerns around blanket re-zoning.

How would you approach the need for afforable housing, while also investing in significant infrastructure in the inner city communities this targets? You cannot expand communities with row housing / duplex units / small apartment without significant upgrades to roadways, sewer/piping, electrical etc. in these communities.

And if these upgrades do occur, who foots the bill? The city? The developers? The buyers?

Would love one canidate to explain their view on this.

Densification can be done to a certain level using the infrastructure we already have. Many city systems especially in the sprawling suburbs we built in the 70s-90s have excess capacity, so we should first focus on getting the most value out of those existing city assets before rushing into expensive upgrades.

That said, as redevelopment accelerates or intensifies like we've seen in many of the inner-city neighbourhoods in Ward 7, infrastructure investment has to keep pace. The City can use tools like the Established Areas Growth and Change Strategy to direct levies and tax uplift from new development back into the same neighbourhoods for upgrades to roads, sewers, and utilities. Developers should continue to pay off-site levies, and the City should reinvest the added tax revenue from new housing to cover long-term needs.

Besides the hard infrastructure improvements, we also ned to make sure that things like transit and rec centres also keep pace with the expanding needs of a growing population.

[MykeAtkinson]

Originally Posted by LeftWing

Have you legally changed your name? And was it to honor a childhood pet?

The name change was from childhood, but it wasn't a pet. I was playing Star Trek with a friend who decided that my name would be more futuristic if it was spelt with a "y." I then started signing my name like that on school assignments and here we are 30 years later.

[MykeAtkinson]

Originally Posted by gasman

1. Zoning and Development

Blanket rezoning has led to a lot of frustration in established neighborhoods. Developers are taking advantage of the new rules without adequate regard for parking, infrastructure, or community character.

Question: How will you ensure that growth in Ward 7 is balanced and that existing communities aren’t overwhelmed by poorly planned infill? Will you support restoring meaningful local input into zoning decisions?

2. Calgary Police and Oversight

Calgary residents are increasingly concerned about rising crime and disorder, especially property crime and street-level violence. While accountability matters, many feel the CPS needs stronger support to enforce the law and keep streets safe.

Question: How would you balance oversight with ensuring that police have the resources, tools, and authority to actually deter crime and protect residents?

3. Arena and Subsidies

Many Calgarians see the arena deal as a mixed bag. While some question public funding for private ventures, others see long-term economic and community benefits.

Question: How would you approach large-scale projects like the arena to ensure there’s clear public benefit and financial transparency, without automatically rejecting private partnerships?

Hopefully my answers above to Parallex's questions above answers these for you.

[MykeAtkinson]

Originally Posted by Tiger

What would your position be on the Greenline. At Grade, raised, or underground through the downtown?

I support building the Green Line underground through downtown. That section of the route is too critical to risk with an at-grade or elevated design that would slow trains, disrupt traffic, or limit future capacity. An underground alignment is the safest, most reliable, and long-term option for the city.