Ted
Clugston Mayor, Medicine Hat
The City of Medicine Hat continues to invest in our community through revitalization, recreational enhancements, facility improvement, and rehabilitation of our existing infrastructure while at the same time providing support to our social wellness and fiscal responsibility priorities.
We continue to make progress on Council’s top priority: protecting our community from flood. In 2015, we completed berms in the Harlow area and Lions Park. In 2016, work will proceed in Riverside Phase 1 and the Industrial Avenue area. We remain steadfast in our objective of protecting residences and businesses in areas vulnerable to flooding, and providing our community the reassurance that they will be safe when the river or creeks rise.
Todd Wright is the fifth-generation of the Wright Family to run Wright's Jewelry, which has been open since 1898.
As a builder, mason and contractor, Yuill built the Medicine Hat Milling Company and was a Medicine Hat city councillor for two terms.
Medicine Hat has always had a diverse selection of businesses and today, there's little you could want for by way of goods and services, from unique locally owned and operated shops to global chains and major manufacturers.
Many of the businesses aren't rooted quite as deeply as Wright's Jewelry or Cook Southland Funeral Home (family owned since the 1940s), yet still have decades of experience and leadership behind them. Some are also making their mark beyond Medicine Hat, like Weddingstar. In business for 30 years now, it has a massive online presence in the wedding industry, sending decor and accessories — including customizable products — to online shoppers in countries throughout the world.
It will be interesting to look back another century from now at how the region's economy has been shaped by entrepreneurs and their descendants. ■
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In 2015, nearly $200,000 was invested in our downtown merchants and retailers through the Downtown Development Incentive Program grants and in 2016 another $200K is available to do the same. The 500 block of Second Street SE was transformed both underground and above ground during another phase of the Second Street SE Revitalization Project. Plans are in place to finish the 400 block, the last phase of this project, in 2016.
The Canalta Centre opened with much fanfare in September 2015 and focus has now shifted to the much anticipated opening of the Family Leisure Centre expansion. The FLC expansion will see a new twin field house and gymnasium including
a running and walking track, additional 50 metre pool with spectator seating, and an expanded fitness centre. Anticipated opening is June 2016.
Southeast Alberta is set to become a major tourist destination. Tourists came in abundance in 2015, taking time to enjoy the stunning natural beauty and the cultural experiences of our community. Tourism has become a key driver of our city’s socio-economic progress producing many related economic and employment benefits.
In 2015, the economy and the energy sector brought challenges for the City and our community, as well as our province and nation as a whole. The City’s current financial position requires that tough decisions be made at the municipal level. We are facing a $23 million shortfall in our annual energy subsidy to the City’s operating budget due to decreased commodity prices. Our Financially Fit for the Future initiative, which will include public consultation, will position the City of Medicine Hat to be sustainable over the long term.
Challenges are on the horizon from 2016 – as are opportunities. I expect Medicine Hat to continue to see activity and growth in various sectors. As a council, we will continue to enhance our community for residents and visitors alike and ensure our infrastructure and facilities remain safe and reliable in the future.
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