Don't expand city council, commission recommends

A ward boundaries commission says Calgarys city council should not be expanded until at least 2021.

The three-person commission concluded that adding councillors would not meaningfully reduce the current workload and could result in longer city council meetings.

• City councillors swamped by reading, Manning Foundation concludes

Instead, the panel suggested councillors be provided with additional resources to deal with their existing workload.

It also said the city should consider setting up offices in the wards to give voters better access to their elected officials.

The commission found it would cost over $3.5 million dollars to add two more councillors around the table.

Calgary last added councillors in 1977 when the city had about one-third of its current population.

Council will discuss the report at its next meetingon Monday.