Lethbridge Minute: Grand Opening, Watermain Replacement, and Galt Gardens Safety

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

This Week In Lethbridge:

• There are no Council or Committee meetings scheduled at City Hall this week. 
  
  
• A project is beginning to replace 100-year old watermains and introduce protected cycling lanes, the first of their kind in the city. Once underway, the project will close a segment of road between 3rd and 4th Avenues on 7th Street South and will include pavement work on various streets. The protected bicycle lanes will be constructed along 4 Avenue South. Many business owners are upset, saying the construction will kill their business and that they were left out of the consultation process. The City maintains that consultation occurred.
  
  
• Due to Canadian government legislation, much of the news content we share and comment on is being blocked on Facebook. We’ll have more information about our future plans in the coming weeks, but in the meantime, be sure to follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn, where we’re still posting regularly.

Last Week In Lethbridge:

• The discovery of a small, bear-shaped item, later confirmed as fentanyl, at Galt Gardens has raised alarm bells. Found inside an unattended bag, the greenish-blue item could have been easily mistaken for candy. The incident has reignited safety concerns that were brought up by residents when the City decided to build a playground in the area. Council recently rejected a proposal to explore the installation of wrought iron fencing around Galt Gardens, and the City’s Urban Revitalization Manager has said that building a kids’ play area is a way to bring positive behaviours into the space.
  
  
• The eagerly anticipated Agri-Food Hub and Trade Centre officially opened in the Henderson Lake area. The 268,000 square foot venue received two grand openings - a morning pipe offering with the Blackfoot Confederacy, and an afternoon ribbon-cutting. This project, originally dreamed up over two decades ago, cost $76.6 million to complete and was funded through multiple sources, including a $3.5 million federal grant from PrairiesCan, and a 30-year loan secured against the future operations of the venue.
  
  
• The signs have been put up and the City has been preparing for the new harmonized school and playground zones. Reduced speed limits of 30 km/h will be in effect from 7:30 am to 9:00 pm every day, and existing school zones will be combined into playground zones. According to the City, by reducing your speed from 50 km/h to 30 km/h through a 300 meter zone will only add 14 seconds to your commute. The new speed limits take effect on the first day of school, September 5th.

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