Lethbridge Minute: Budget Approval, Runaway Ostriches, and Health Table Formed

Lethbridge Minute: Budget Approval, Runaway Ostriches, and Health Table Formed

 

Lethbridge Minute - Your weekly one-minute summary of Lethbridge politics

 

This Week In Lethbridge:

  • There will be a City Council meeting on Tuesday at 1:30 pm. At this meeting, the 2023-2026 Budget will be discussed and will likely be approved. After the Economic Standing Policy Committee had finished deliberating the proposed budget, the average annual property tax increase was even higher than proposed. It was originally meant to be just under 4% but, after amendments, came in at 5.1%. If the Committee had not declined some of the other proposals in front of them, it would have been more than 6%!
  • On Thursday, at 2:00 pm, there will be a meeting of the Civic Works Standing Policy Committee. On the agenda is a presentation from Solas Energy Consulting entitled “Sustainable Transportation, Heating, and Electrification Trends.” The presentation provides an update on how work done to date by City departments aligns with the United Nations Sustainable Goals framework and which industry trends should be driving the direction going forward. The Committee will also receive a presentation from the University of Calgary’s Civic Common Catalyst team regarding revitalization of Lethbridge’s under-used spaces.

  • The City is looking for feedback regarding its Parks Master Plan and residents have until December 19th to provide their input. The current master plan is 15 years old and the City feels it’s time for an update. The plan will help shape the delivery of park and land amenities over the next 15-20 years, so make sure to have your say!

 

Last Week In Lethbridge:

  • The Mayor's 2022 Community Hockey Challenge took place yesterday in an effort to raise donations for the food bank. The first Challenge last year raised $4,500 and, while this year's total isn't available yet, it's expected to be even higher. The "Lethbridge City Staff" team beat the "Community Partners" team 8-2, for their second win in two years. 

  • Provincial, Municipal, and Indigenous leadership formed what is being called an ‘historic’ intergovernmental health table. The partnership is an effort to address social challenges facing Lethbridge and the Blood Tribe. Mayor Blaine Hyggen will co-chair the table along with the head of the Blood Tribe Department of Health, Charles Weaslehead. Lethbridge-East MLA Nathan Neudorf will also serve at the table. Meetings are expected to take place on a regular basis - at least quarterly.

  • City Council might have their heads in the sand, but a flock of ostriches sure didn't! Our neighbours in Taber experienced quite the scene when 20 ostriches escaped from a nearby farm and ran a-fowl of the law. The event prompted a swift response from the local RCMP, who helped the farmer round up the wayward birds. In a now-viral video, a man can be seen attempting to capture one of the ostriches from a moving vehicle. While this is the accepted wrangling technique, it looks about as futile as Council attempting to control spending.

 

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