Alfred Herman "Al" Duerr (born January 29, 1951) is a Canadian former Canadian politician who served as the 34th Mayor of

Calgary Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, makin ...

, Alberta from 1989 to 2001, and a city alderman from 1983 to 1989.

Education

Duerr attended the University of Saskatchewan and graduated with a degree in Urban Geography and Regional Urban Development and holds a Masters of Business Administration degree from Haskayne School of Business at the University of Calgary.

Political career

Duerr was first elected as an Alderman for Ward 9 on Calgary City Council in 1983, and was re-elected in 1986. Incumbent Mayor Ralph Klein would resign in the months before the 1989 municipal election to purse provincial office, and Al Duerr would contest and win the Mayor's seat in the 1989 election. Duerr would go on to be re-elected as Mayor three more times in 1992, 1995, and 1998 before deciding not to contest the

2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a Participants in ...

, which was won by former Alderman Dave Bronconnier. Al Duerr's time as mayor coincided with significant spending cuts by the federal government and austerity policies by Ralph Klein's provincial government. Provincial austerity would result in significant reduction in grant funding for municipalities which in turn resulted in lower capital spending and public construction projects in Calgary. In 1991, Al Duerr would proclaim gay pride week in Calgary, however he would deny future proclamations due to public pressure. During his four terms, Duerr was considered one of the most popular mayors in the city's history. His conciliatory,

managerial style Management consists of the planning, prioritizing, and organizing work efforts to accomplish objectives within a business organization. A management style is the particular way managers go about accomplishing these objectives. It encompasses the wa ...

and likeable personality made him well respected. Duerr was given the nickname of "Mr. Beige" by local media columnists, and in the 1998 election would be challenged by local political columnist Rick Bell, although Bell's candidacy was not a serious attempt to contest the mayor's office. In 1997 while serving as Mayor, Duerr played the character of Mayor Wilkins in an episode of the television show Viper.

Later life

He is the Chief Executive Officer of Emergo Projects International, and serves on the board of directors for two other companies in Calgary. He is a member of the Community and Partners Advisory Committee of the

Libin Cardiovascular Institute of Alberta The 'Libin Cardiovascular Institute'' is an entity of Alberta Health Services and the University of Calgary. It connects all cardiovascular research, education and clinical care in Southern Alberta. The Institute coordinates the activities of o ...

. In 2014, Duerr was appointed Chair of the independent Calgary Ward Boundary Commission to examine the boundaries of Calgary City Council wards in time for the 2017 Calgary municipal election. The Commission recommended against increasing the number of councillors for the City and instead recommended creating satellite offices for larger constituencies and increasing the budget of councillor's office.

Personal life

Duerr is married to Kit Chan, and has two children.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Duerr, Al Mayors of Calgary Canadian people of German descent People from Humboldt, Saskatchewan Living people 1951 births Calgary city councillors 20th-century Canadian politicians 21st-century Canadian politicians