The city is well-positioned to navigate the ongoing trade war, Calgary’s mayor says, although Jyoti Gondek acknowledges many sectors will be hit hard by impending U.S. tariffs.
The mayor made the comments ahead of her state of the city address to a room full of Rotarians in downtown Calgary on Tuesday.
“Our city is in an incredibly strong position right now because we’ve done the groundwork to ensure that we are a strong inland port, that we are developing solutions locally to keep our supply chain strong,” Gondek said.
It was also a speech that comes amid an ongoing federal election campaign.
The mayor says she will write a letter to the federal party leaders this week.
“The biggest thing I can tell you is that cities deserve respect from the federal government. We are the economic engines of this country, and we do not have a seat at the table as often as we should,” she said.
Calgary has a “tariff advisory group” made up of representatives from several industries.
Calgary is considering sector-specific relief measures to help businesses hit harder by the tariff situation.
The Calgary Chamber of Commerce wants to see short-term help for businesses as well but says long-term solutions need to be discussed at length by federal party leaders throughout the campaign.
The chamber has a long list of topics it will watch for over the next five weeks.
“Everything from natural resource development to small businesses and entrepreneurship to our global trade relationships to community infrastructure and supporting well-being broadly,” said Ruhee Ismail-Teja with the chamber.
