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

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

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

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

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

Last night we hosted our second-ever, in-person event.

Since our inaugural event last year, we had been trying to make our meet-ups a regular occurrence, but as you may have noticed, world events got in the way.

We met for casual drinks at Honkers Pub & Eatery, and enjoyed the chance to meet many of our supporters for the first time.

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

When Lethbridge residents went to the polls last October, a majority of the Council that they elected campaigned on fiscal responsibility. This is perhaps no wonder, given Lethbridge already has one of the highest property tax rates in Alberta, and it had become crystal clear to almost everyone that constantly hiking taxes was no longer sustainable.

Yet, a clear majority of more than 60% of voters also supported a referendum question to make constructing a third bridge a municipal priority. City staff calculate that the $200 - $300 million cost of the new bridge would result in a tax increase of up to 22.1% for Lethbridgians - an extra $880 per year for the average household!

At first glance, these two election results might seem contradictory.

How could voters finally vote to get spending under control, but also endorse a massive new capital project that clearly most families can’t afford in today’s economic environment?

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

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