Growth & Funding Dominate MCMC Summit
More than 140 municipal leaders from across Alberta gathered in Red Deer from September 16th to September 18th for the Alberta Mid-Sized Cities Mayors’ Caucus.
Representing 25 municipalities from across the province, mayors and municipal leaders came together to discuss some of the biggest challenges facing their communities — and one issue stood out throughout the gathering: growth.
Across Alberta, mid-sized communities are experiencing significant population growth, bringing with it increased demands on infrastructure, housing, transportation and municipal services.
Representatives from both the federal and provincial governments were also on hand to speak directly with municipal leaders about a range of issues, including affordability, e-bikes and e-scooters, infrastructure, funding, and the challenges that come with unprecedented population growth.
We caught up with Mayor Jeff Acker of the City of Spruce Grove, who also serves as chair of the Mid-Sized Cities Mayors’ Caucus.
On the first day of the convention, we asked Mayor Acker what he was hearing from municipal leaders and how bringing all 25 municipalities together could help communities across Alberta address some of these shared challenges.
We also spoke with Mayor Jackie Clayton of the City of Grande Prairie about the importance of having municipal leaders from across the province gathered in one place — and the value of speaking with a unified voice when it comes to provincial and federal funding.
And, of course, as the host city, Red Deer welcomed more than 140 municipal leaders from across Alberta.
Mayor Cindy Jefferies of the City of Red Deer said the gathering provided an opportunity to connect with municipal leaders from across the province, almost one year after the important 2025 municipal election.
We also spoke with Mayor Jefferies about the issues facing Red Deer and whether she was seeing those same concerns reflected in the conversations happening among mayors and councillors from communities across Alberta.
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