Why We Endorse Jyoti
For the past four years, Jyoti has served as Mayor of Calgary. Whether cutting red tape to get more housing built, stepping up where other orders of government have failed, making our streets safer, or protecting recreation programs and infrastructure, her track record as mayor speaks volumes. Jyoti Gondek is the only choice to continue moving Calgary forward.
About Jyoti Gondek
From 2017 to 2021 Jyoti was the City Councillor for Ward 3, and in 2021 she was elected Mayor of Calgary.
Under Jyoti’s leadership, Calgary has become a national leader in housing solutions by driving record housing starts and championing the “Home is Here” housing strategy. Crime rates have decreased during her tenure as mayor, and in the City of Calgary’s citizen satisfaction survey Calgarians report feeling safer in their communities. Jyoti is working to make Calgary more resilient to climate change and ensure a liveable future for all of us. She is proud to stand up for public services and the individuals who deliver them.
Jyoti’s track record as Mayor of Calgary includes:
- Rolling out innovative housing strategies, including a modular housing pilot with Attainable Homes Calgary.
- Delivering 11 office-to-residential conversions, creating more than 1,500 new homes and boosting property values by $1.8 billion.
- Dedicating city land and funding to affordable housing providers.
- Stepping up for Calgarians by funding the low-income transit pass when the province pulled funding.
- Lowering crime rates and making Calgary a safer city for everyone.
- Championing investments in community facilities like splash pads and hockey rinks.
- Guiding Calgary through the June 2024 water emergency with calm, transparent communication.
- Protecting the economy against international trade threats.
Jyoti was named Municipal World’s inaugural Mayor of the Year, honouring her steady hand in times of crisis and her bold vision for Calgary’s future.
The San Francisco Chronicle praised Calgary’s downtown renewal under Jyoti’s leadership as a model for cities across North America. Now, Calgary has ten more office-to-residential projects in the pipeline, with over 1,100 more homes to come.
Jyoti has proven she is a trusted leader with clarity, vision, and resolve. She is ready to continue leading City Hall with her collaborative and solution-focused approach. Jyoti Gondek is the only candidate who is positioned to lead us forward and build a better future for all Calgarians.
Learn More
If you want to learn more about Jyoti and see where she stands on critical issues facing Calgarians today, check out her responses to our Candidate Questionnaire:
With your vote, the next four years will be about protecting what matters and building what’s possible.
Jyoti Gondek
“Having begun foundational work to improve transit and public safety, as well as reinvesting in the core services Calgarians deserve, I’m running to ensure we keep protecting what matters while we’re building what’s possible.
During this term, I have led with calm conviction and delivered important housing and transit projects, strengthened the diversity of our economy, and initiated public safety measures that have improved life for Calgarians. With your vote, the next four years will be about protecting what matters and building what’s possible. We will maintain and grow infrastructure, while we ensure that local businesses gain diverse market access and we create more manufacturing and trade opportunities.”
On housing affordability:
If we continue to enable more housing types on lots, expedite permitting and approvals processes, develop city-owned land, and prioritize transit-oriented development, we will be able to match demand and keep housing affordable in both rental and ownership markets.
“There is no single solution that can adequately address the housing crisis we find ourselves in, and that’s why Home is Here is a nimble, responsive and coordinated approach to creating both market and non-market housing in Calgary. Home is Here is the City’s housing strategy, one that is leading all cities in the nation and making Calgary the leader in national housing starts. It was created to combine quick wins, like per-door incentives for non-market housing and secondary suite incentives, with longer term solutions, like disposition of City-owned lands for non-market housing and a focus on accessibility, pet-friendliness and cultural appropriateness for future builds.
Because every Calgarian is at a different stage of life, and family composition differs between all of us, it is critical to build a variety of housing options in all communities to ensure that people can age in place and also be able to afford to live in the neighbourhood of their choice. It’s also critical to recognize downtown as a neighbourhood with so much to offer, and that’s why I have steadfastly supported office-to-residential conversion projects that deliver both market and non-market housing in the core of our city.
A housing strategy is only as strong as the infrastructure that supports the housing. That’s why I have continued to invest in critical infrastructure like pipes, roads, transit and recreation.
Because I have worked with Council to support the key areas mentioned above, Calgary is a national leader in housing starts. Not only does this create jobs for Calgarians, the increasing supply in the market will help us meet the demand and eventually lower overall housing costs; results we are already seeing. If we continue to enable more housing types on lots, expedite permitting and approvals processes, develop city-owned land, and prioritize transit-oriented development, we will be able to match demand and keep housing affordable in both rental and ownership markets.
We must also continue the work with other orders of government to enable a broad spectrum of funding options – like the Housing Accelerator Fund. Attracting $228 million dollars from the federal government, plus a $22.8 million top up, is clear proof that our strategy and actions are working.“
On public transit:
The Green Line LRT is a generational investment that will create jobs, unlock housing and development opportunities, and provide Calgarians the ability to use public transit for all their daily needs.
“Until a full North-South completion, the Green Line should always be a top priority for Council. The Green Line LRT is a generational investment that will create jobs, unlock housing and development opportunities, and provide Calgarians the ability to use public transit for all their daily needs.
Because I was able to get the Provincial government back to the negotiation table, the South leg of the Green Line has started construction. Now, we need to prioritize two things: 1) expediting and streamlining the construction and procurement processes, and 2) planning the next leg and the most vital part of the Green Line, the downtown portion. The current Provincial alignment plan for downtown comes with a great amount of uncertainty and risk. We need a Mayor and Council that will ensure the downtown alignment does not sacrifice local businesses or public safety, and is chosen based on stakeholder and expert engagement.
As the former Ward 3 Councillor, I know that region has the highest ridership in the city. In 2020, I ensured that north central Calgary was not left behind and created the vision for the convertible BRT to LRT line that is now called MAX Green. It is vital that while the South leg of the Green Line is being constructed, we are adequately funding and supporting BRT infrastructure that can eventually transition to allow for LRT.
In order to move BRT projects, we need to fund the Route Ahead Strategy and expand transit-only lanes, procure more buses and drivers, and invest directly into the MAX Green, the 144th Ave BRT, and the 52nd BRT lines to keep the north connected and enable it to feed into future LRT.“
On climate planning:
In the face of devastating hail storms and catastrophic flooding in our city, it is clear that we need to mitigate negative climate impacts. It is for that reason that I advocated for the Clean Energy Improvement Program (CEIP) and I continue to push for greater sustainability of transit fleets and higher efficiency buildings.
“In the face of devastating hail storms and catastrophic flooding in our city, it is clear that we need to mitigate negative climate impacts. It is for that reason that I advocated for the Clean Energy Improvement Program (CEIP) and I continue to push for greater sustainability of transit fleets and higher efficiency buildings.
I have also called for the Province to include hail resistant housing materials as part of CEIP, and have asked them to set up a hail impact recovery fund to assist homeowners whose properties were destroyed through hail damage.
We are an evacuee-receiving city, which means we see firsthand the devastating impact of wildfires in our province and beyond. When you consider the losses faced by the people of Yellowknife and Jasper in the past two years, it makes our own actions in the city important on a broader scale.“
On public services:
Public services are foundational to a livable city and are the backbone of a high quality of life for residents. Things like transit access, emergency response, waste management, recycling, and bylaw enforcement are what make or break everyday life for Calgarians.
“Public services are foundational to a livable city and are the backbone of a high quality of life for residents. Things like transit access, emergency response, waste management, recycling, and bylaw enforcement are what make or break everyday life for Calgarians. These services can also be tailored to meet the needs of different socio-economic groups through programs like Fair Entry, ensuring equity of access across Calgary.
We must remember that the individuals providing the service are at the heart of what matters to Calgarians. These are people who manage our facilities, operate transit, care for our parks and do so much more every day and these are the people that deserve our appreciation and respect.“
Where to Find Jyoti
Other Links
CBC: Gondek wins Canada’s Mayor of the Year Award
Municipal World: Mayor of the Year
Calgary Herald Op-Ed: Calgary’s strength fuels Canada’s prosperity
San Francisco Chronicle: Turning empty downtown offices into housing