Calgary council delays final decision on city master plan
Posted Jun 17, 2026 10:51 am.
Calgary city council has voted to delay a final decision on The Calgary Plan, a sweeping 300‑page blueprint that aims to guide how the city grows as it approaches two million residents.
Councillors voted 13–2 on Tuesday to defer debate until January, arguing the document is too significant to rush and needs more scrutiny before moving ahead.
The plan was lasted updated in 2009 and outlines long‑term goals for development, density, transportation and community engagement. It also serves as the foundation for future policies.
But concerns over housing density, consultation practices and specific language in the document prompted council to pause the process and seek more time.
Mayor Jeromy Farkas said council wants to avoid repeating past mistakes as it charts Calgary’s future.
“We don’t want to stand on the same landmines that the previous mayor and council did,” he said.
Ward 13 Coun. Dan McLean criticized the plan’s approach to density, saying it resembles blanket rezoning.
“It allows for a lot more density in established neighbourhoods,” he said. “I wanna kill this.”
Councillors also raised issues ranging from parking and bike lanes to how the city engages with different communities. Ward 9 Coun. Harrison Clark questioned the document’s language around Indigenous consultation.
“In every instance where Indigenous people may be engaged, it’s always a ‘may’ statement, there’s not a single ‘should’ except for arts and culture,” he said.
City officials say nearly 50,000 Calgarians were consulted over three years, and a sixth and final round of engagement had been planned before the vote. But council opted to halt the process for now.
Ward 6 Coun. John Pantazopoulos said the size and complexity of the plan require more time.
“I can tell you in the last six days as we’ve talked about this plan as a council, I’ve had more deeper conversations with my council colleagues than in the last six months,” he said.
A public hearing will be scheduled at a later date to give Calgarians another opportunity to weigh in before the plan returns to council for approval.
