Lethbridge County pass 2025 budget with a focus on financial sustainability

Posted on December 12, 2024 by Sunny South News

Southern Alberta Newspapers

Lethbridge County Council has approved the 2025 Budget, which emphasizes a commitment to sustainability, enhanced services and strategic investments in infrastructure.

Priorities in 2025 include:

•  Sustainability – leveraging technology to work more efficiently and provide enhanced customer service, and analyzing our assets to make informed, data-driven decisions

•  Operational enhancements – increasing capacity in our Public Works department to improve our responsiveness throughout the year

•  Strategic financial management – increased contributions to reserves to invest in critical infrastructure

Infrastructure investments for 2025 are:

•  Road improvements in some subdivisions and on a section of RR 22-5 near the CPKC marshalling yard to extend the life of the roads

•  A bridge replacement on TWP 9-4 (Kipp Road) as the bridge is nearing the end of its lifespan

•  Utility upgrades for the Shaughnessy sanitary sewer pipeline to extend the life of the system and the Broxburn Business Park raw water reservoir to improve water quality

•  Playground upgrades in Turin in collaboration with the community association

 “Our infrastructure, especially our road network, supports the most productive agricultural region in Alberta,” said CAO Cole Beck. “Strengthening our reserves and ensuring adequate funds in future years to maintain this infrastructure was a key consideration when developing the budget. Many of our initiatives include working toward improving our value per dollar investment and overall customer experiences for residents and ratepayers.”

The 2025 budget proposes a 3.997 per cent property tax increase to support the County’s operational activities. When deliberating the many facets of the budget, Council sought to strike a balance between fiscal responsibility and ensuring both short and long-term success for the County. Many factors impact these decisions, including revenue generation, expenditure requirements and the need to put funds aside for the future.

External challenges, such as inflation, increased costs for contracted services and provincial mandates for recreation funding and policing, have a significant impact on the 2025 budget. To offset these costs, administration has reviewed County operations to find efficiencies and savings.

“Our focus has been on creating a budget that not only meets the current needs of our residents and businesses but also prepares us for the future,” says Reeve Tory Campbell. “Council is confident this budget will serve Lethbridge County well in 2025 and bring value to our ratepayers in the form of enhanced services in the long-term.”

The full document is available online or at the County’s Lethbridge administration office.