Lethbridge Minute: Tourism Initiative, Encampment Update, and Community Service Funding

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

This Week In Lethbridge:

• There are no meetings scheduled at City Hall this week. Council and Committee meetings will resume in September.
  
  
• Temporary traffic signal changes to facilitate construction begin today. At 4 Avenue and 7 Street South, the traffic signals will be removed, and the intersection will be converted to an all-way stop. Lane reductions in the area are expected to cause traffic delays.
  
  
• The Whoop-Up Days Parade takes place on Tuesday, beginning at 9:00 am at Park Place Mall. This year’s theme is “Celebrating Canada’s Agriculture Destination” and the parade marshal is none other than Corb Lund, one of Canada’s most accomplished country singer-songwriters. Mayor Blaine Hyggen will be serving up free burgers and hot dogs post-parade for the first 1,000 guests at the annual Mayor’s Community BBQ in front of City Hall. Whoop-Up Days runs until August 26th.

Last Week In Lethbridge:

• Tourism Lethbridge announced a new initiative ahead of the annual Whoop-Up Days festivities. “Sip, Taste, Explore! A Southern Alberta Agriventure!” is a collaboration with the Downtown Business Revitalization Zone (BRZ). Visitors (or Lethbridgians) can sign up for free to receive a map of different locations where they can collect points while experiencing local agri-food products at more than 30 participating businesses. Points can be redeemed for prizes at the Tourism Lethbridge Visitor Information Centre or through the Downtown BRZ office. Some federal funding for the initiative was provided by Prairies Economic Development Canada.
  
  
• The City provided an update on its Encampment Strategy. According to the City, there has been a significant decrease in entrenched encampments - meaning that people are setting up tents for the evening and then leaving in the morning rather than building a more permanent settlement. There have been 174 calls related to encampments since June 19th, as well as 14 coordinated clean-ups, which have removed 542 structures and 27,000 kilograms of debris. The Lethbridge Police Service says the Street Medicine Outreach Program, operated in partnership with the Blood Tribe Department of Health, has been making a positive impact.
  
  
• The federal government provided financial support for community service organizations nationwide, including several non-profits located in southern Alberta. A total of 52 organizations in the area will receive a combined $2,081,091 through the Community Services Recovery Fund. The second largest disbursement in the region, after Medicine Hat’s Sanare Centre, was provided to Inclusion Lethbridge. They received $99,960 for a recruitment to retention initiative. Other recipients included the Lethbridge Sport Council and the Lethbridge Family Centre. The full list can be viewed online.

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