Lethbridge Minute: Quarterly Report, Encampment Funding, and Heritage Day Celebrations

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

This Week In Lethbridge:

• As summer continues, there are no meetings scheduled this week at City Hall.
  
  
• Heritage Day celebrations have returned to their pre-pandemic, in-person format. Today at the Multicultural Centre, from 11:00 am to 4:00 pm, there will be a celebration of cultural diversity. Put on by the Southern Alberta Ethnic Association, the event will feature delicious food, cultural performances, door prizes, children’s activities, and more. Admission is $5 at the door or online in advance.
  
  
• Upside Downtown, a series of free weekly concerts, continues this week in the Rotary Square at Casa. Thursday’s performance begins at 5:00 pm and features Bailey Kate. Guests are encouraged to take a downtown stroll afterwards, enjoying the great local shops and restaurants the city has to offer.

Last Week In Lethbridge:

• City Council voted 7-1 to fund “compassionate clean-up” at encampments. One-time funding of $230,000 will come from corporate budget contingencies to aid in the administrative and policing shortfalls necessary to expedite the cleanup. The initial motion, proposed by Mayor Blaine Hyggen, called for $700,000 and other operative clauses to address the complex issues behind the encampments. Those clauses, and the other $470,000, will be discussed at a future Council meeting.
  
  
• A new Therapeutic Foster Care program has been rolled out in Southern Alberta. The program takes an alternative approach to care and prioritizes the family relationships of children who have complex trauma-related issues. It also emphasizes maintaining the child’s connection with their communities and families of origin with the long-term goal of having children return home.
  
  
• The second quarterly report for the Gateway to Opportunity 2022 Action Plan was unanimously accepted by City Council. The Action Plan outlines the status of each initiative that Council has identified as a priority. Highlights from the report, showing either projects that have been completed or where significant progress has been made, include the construction of pickleball courts, free bus passes for refugees, the creation of a commission to examine a Ward Electoral System, a pilot program for toxic/e-waste, and streamlining the process for film companies to operate in Lethbridge.

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