‘I made a mistake’: Cartmell apologizes for missing extended Edmonton infill debate while on vacation

Edmonton mayoral candidate Tim Cartmell is apologizing for missing the end of a lengthy public hearing over the city’s zoning bylaw that extended into his family vacation.

Cartmell and fellow city councillor Sarah Hamilton were not present for the final day of infill housing density debate at city hall last Tuesday, which capped off with a vote by city leaders.

The decision to extend the meeting into the week, rather than delaying the vote until the end of summer, came on the Friday before the start of Cartmell’s vacation.

READ: More controversy over Edmonton infill meeting and councillor vacations

At the time he said he could not attend the meeting remotely because he would have poor connectivity, adding it was “beyond disrespectful to infringe upon those plans through poor planning” by city council.

Now Cartmell, in a statement, says he regrets missing the meeting continuation.

“Like any demanding position, whether it’s elected representation or a high-level executive position or ownership of a small business, the demands of the role extend to one’s family,” he wrote.

“Family occasions are missed, plans are changed or cancelled, close ones are often disappointed. Family support is necessary, even demanded – and then taken for granted, with a promise to “make it up next time.”

Cartmell said it was important for him to spend “one final week” with his family ahead of an election campaign, “and hopefully four years as mayor during which there will likely be no opportunity at all to squeeze in a family vacation.”

The mayoral candidate and his family vacationed in a remote place in Eastern Canada that was “deliberately chosen because it had no connectivity and therefore no distractions,” Cartmell explained.

“Our choice of destination also prevented a delay in departure by a day or two. My choices were to go and hope to connect, or don’t go at all. While virtual attendance is usually an option, and while I tried to connect to the Council meeting, I was unable to join.

“I made a mistake. I intend to learn from it.”

Cartmell has long maintained he would work to address infill if elected in the fall. Edmontonians head to the polls Oct. 20.

“Getting infill right was always going to take an election, and that has not changed,” he wrote.

In that July 8 meeting, city leaders narrowly voted against a change to the zoning bylaw that would have capped the number of units in mid-block infill housing from six down to eight.

–With files from Darcy Ropchan and Lauren Boothby