Lethbridge Minute: Issue 227

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

📅 This Week In Lethbridge: 📅

• On Tuesday, at 12:30 pm, there will be a meeting of City Council. Councillors Schmidt-Rempel and Crowson will bring forward an Official Business Motion directing Administration to present an update on the City’s new Economic Development Strategy at the July 10th, 2025, Economic & Finance Standing Policy Committee meeting. The motion highlights that the City's current Economic Development Strategy is out of date, and that a new one is being developed as part of the Development Based Initiatives project, incorporating feedback from a recent closed workshop with the aforementioned Committee. The motion calls for the presentation to include any temporary resources needed to complete and implement the strategy, along with potential development incentives discussed in the workshop. Additionally, the motion asks that the City’s partners, Economic Development Lethbridge and Tourism Lethbridge, be invited to participate in this meeting.
  
  
• Also on the agenda, and again being proposed by Councillors Schmidt-Rempel and Crowson, is an Official Business Motion to have Administration develop a Long-Term Financial Sustainability Framework to formalize the City's existing financial principles and practices. The motion notes that while Lethbridge has built strong fiscal programs over time, a formal framework is needed to guide future decision-making. The goal is to ensure long-term financial health while allowing flexibility for future Councils to pursue their strategic goals. If accepted, the new framework will be presented to the Economic & Finance Standing Policy Committee by the end of the first quarter of 2026.
  
  
• On Thursday, at 9:00 am, the Economic and Finance Standing Policy Committee will hold a closed workshop to discuss economic development matters. The meeting will include discussions on updating the Economic Development Strategy and exploring future investment incentive programs. The Committee will also review the cost-benefit analysis of Economic Development Lethbridge’s fee-for-service arrangements and consider improvements to how these agreements are managed.
  
  
• At the public portion of the Economic and Finance Standing Policy Committee, which takes place on Thursday at 12:30 pm, Tourism Lethbridge will present its 2025 Annual Update. As the City’s official Destination Management Organization, Tourism Lethbridge will outline its strategy to boost visitation, grow the tourism market share, and enhance Lethbridge’s national profile. The presentation will highlight alignment with provincial goals, including Indigenous tourism, infrastructure development, and event hosting. Key projects moving forward include expanding marketing campaigns, supporting local attractions like the Galt Museum and Nikka Yuko Japanese Garden, and promoting the Henderson Recreation District and Visitlethbridge.com Arena. Tourism Lethbridge also plans to launch a new Explore app, attract major sport and business events, and increase collaboration with local stakeholders. No new funding is being requested. Council will be asked to receive the update for information.
  
  
• The Committee will also discuss adopting a new Asset Management Strategy as a guiding document. The strategy does not have a direct budget impact but will shape future decisions by linking asset planning to the City's operating and capital budgets. The City currently manages more than $2.8 billion in infrastructure, and this strategy will support departments in developing detailed Asset Management Plans that assess condition, service levels, replacement needs, and risk. These plans will help identify and prioritize spending needs and will be reviewed each budget cycle. Asset Management is becoming a standard requirement for provincial infrastructure grants, such as the $14.3 million allocated annually through the Local Government Fiscal Framework. Adopting this strategy positions the City to remain eligible for such funding. Administration has already completed Asset Management Plans for several departments, with more to follow in future meetings of the Economic Standing Policy Committee.
  
  
• The City has approved $1.2 million in funding for 26 community projects through two grant programs: the Community Capital Project Grant (CCPG) and the new Make-Your-Mark (MYM) grant. The CCPG supports large projects requiring matching funds, while the MYM grant funds small and mid-sized initiatives. The University of Lethbridge received the largest CCPG award at $200,000 to help build a $13.7 million Multi-Sport Dome. Other CCPG grants supported a new playground at West Coulee Station and a welding facility at Winston Churchill High School. MYM projects included accessibility upgrades, a new shuttle bus for Nord-Bridge Seniors, and sports equipment sanitization led by the Lethbridge Sport Council. Demand for the MYM grant was high, with over $2.2 million requested across 57 applications.

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