Lethbridge Minute: Issue 282

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

📅 This Week In Lethbridge: 📅

• City Council unanimously approved the City's 2027 operating budget on Tuesday, following more than 40 revisions to the spending plan. The municipal portion of residents' property taxes will rise by 2.67% under the approved budget. Mayor Blaine Hyggen says the plan contains minimal reductions in services and aligns with the City's 2026-2029 Strategic Plan. The next major round of deliberations will centre on the 2027-2030 capital plan, which Council expects to take up in the latter part of the year.
  
  
• The Alberta government has paused its plan to change how integrated fire and EMS services are delivered after strong opposition from several municipalities, including Lethbridge. The proposal would have required affected communities to pay more to maintain their existing integrated emergency services or allow the province to assume responsibility for ambulance operations. Hospital and Surgical Health Services Minister Adriana LaGrange said the government decided to halt the rollout after hearing concerns from local leaders and residents, adding that a more flexible approach is needed while working toward cost targets by 2028-29. Mayor Blaine Hyggen welcomed the decision, saying it gives municipalities a chance to find a sustainable solution without placing additional costs on taxpayers.
  
  
• The City of Lethbridge is set to receive a $2.7 million funding package from the Province and the federal government aimed at community safety and well-being, with the money to be divided over three years. Close to $800,000 of that total is directed at the encampment situation in Lethbridge. Part of the package will also keep the Off The Record program, which pairs youth with first responders, running into the future. Mayor Blaine Hyggen welcomed the funding but noted that it ultimately comes from taxpayers, saying that whether the money arrives federally, provincially, or locally, "it's all coming from our pockets". He described the funding as a piece of the pie coming back into the community. The City has framed the package as support for some of the more vulnerable people in Lethbridge.
  
  
• Lethbridge has been ranked Canada's most affordable city for homebuyers in a new housing affordability report from Royal LePage. The report found that a typical Lethbridge household needs 18.9% of its monthly income to cover mortgage payments, the lowest share among the cities examined. Saint John, Thunder Bay, Red Deer, and Regina rounded out the top five, with mortgage costs accounting for one-quarter or less of a typical household's monthly income in each. The findings came from a survey of residents in the Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver regions, just over half of whom said they would consider moving to a more affordable Canadian city if work or remote arrangements allowed. Royal LePage said the results suggest smaller and mid-sized communities continue to draw interest from buyers priced out of Canada's largest markets. Mayor Blaine Hyggen welcomed the ranking on social media, crediting planned population growth, support for housing development, and the work of City Administration and Council.
  
  
• The second phase of the Whoop-Up Drive and Scenic Drive interchange improvement project begins on Tuesday, June 30th, shifting work to the Scenic Drive South on-ramp from westbound 6 Avenue South. The Scenic Drive on-ramp will close to vehicle and pedestrian traffic, detouring westbound motorists north on 5 Street South and then west on 5 Avenue South, while the northbound Scenic Drive right turn lane to eastbound 5 Avenue will also close. Once the 6 Avenue on-ramp reopens, drivers will no longer be able to turn left onto Scenic Drive, a movement the City is removing after a safety review found it unsafe and relatively low in use. Traffic will instead be directed to options with traffic lights, including 5 Avenue. Work also continues on phase one at the Whoop-Up Drive on-ramp, where a second lane is being added. The City says the project is scheduled for completion in November 2026.

🚨 This Week’s Action Item: 🚨

What do you think? Did you follow this year's budget discussions? If so, do you think City Council struck the right balance between spending, taxes, and maintaining services, or would you have preferred a different approach?

🪙 This Week’s Sponsor: 🪙

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