Federal funding announced for several Red Deer infrastructure projects

The federal and provincial governments have announced funding for 61 infrastructure projects across Alberta, including several in the Red Deer area.

Ottawa is investing more than $73 million in these projects through the COVID-19 Resilience Infrastructure Stream of the Investing in Canada plan. Contributions by recipients toward their respective projects are more than $18 million. In total, this represents a combined infrastructure investment of more than $91 million.

“Alberta’s communities told us they needed help to build needed infrastructure and create […]

Red Deer city council discusses $219 M in capital projects for 2021

Red Deer’s proposed 2021 capital budget has nearly doubled, in these lean times, because the city wants to take advantage of federal and provincial infrastructure grants.

City Manager Allan Seabrooke told council on Monday at the outset of city budget discussions, that about $219.2 million of projects are proposed for next year. This compares to the more usual $125 million for annual infrastructure projects.

The capital funding increase is due to city administrators wanting to tap into federal and provincial governments […]

Construction expected to start next fall at Red Deer hospital

The $100-million expansion of Red Deer Regional Hospital Centre is expected to begin next fall.

Alberta Infrastructure and Alberta Health Services are in the final stages of planning to expand and upgrade the facility, according to the latest update from the province.

In September, AHS said work was progressing after a three-month delay due to COVID-19.

A statement this week said the government recognizes how important it is to get the people of Red Deer the health care they need, and that […]

Ottawa grants $15 million towards Red Deer’s G.H. Dawe Recreation Centre expansion

The federal and provincial governments have contributed their shares toward the $42-million expansion of Red Deer’s G.H. Dawe Centre, but the full municipal portion hasn’t yet been approved.

More than $15 million of federal funding was earmarked this week for the project. This was added to the $12.6 million in provincial Municipal Sustainability Initiative funding that was already expected.

But as for the City of Red Deer’s share of the funding — anticipated to total about $14.3 million, if the expansion’s […]

Lacombe Athletic Park Association unveils sign, breaks ground on field house expansion

The shovels were out but this wasn’t a typical ground-breaking ceremony.

The Lacombe Athletic Park Association (LAPA) had a “socially distant” ME Global sign reveal and fieldhouse expansion celebration on Wednesday.

Read more

Blackfalds needs a new high school, regardless of whether it’s a P3 build, suggests official

Blackfalds is slated to get a new school that could be built as a private-public partnership.

The new high school for the Wolf Creek School Division has a projected budget of about $29 million.

Premier Jason Kenney announced this week that the 970-student school is among five projects the provincial government hopes to fund in partnership with private industry, as part of a P3 bundle amounting to more than $200 million.

Read more

COVID-19 & Construction Activity in Canada

Procore Technologies has provided a Construction Activity Index that illustrates how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected construction activity in Alberta, British Columbia and Ontario, with worker hours dropping in March and recovering in late spring and the summer.  Across the provinces for which data is available, worker hours dropped through March to a low of 41 percent below baseline the week of April 6 but were all above the baseline as of the week of July 27. 

Read more

Province to twin David Thompson Highway from Sylvan Lake to Rocky Mountain House

The David Thompson Highway is getting a makeover.

Premier Jason Kenney was in Sylvan Lake Friday morning to announce a project to twin and divide 66 kilometres of Highway 11 from Sylvan Lake to Rocky Mountain House.

Approximately 5,800 vehicles travel on this section of Highway 11 daily.

The $120 million project will create an estimated 582 jobs — 344 direct and 248 indirect.

Read more

New development to open businesses in Lacombe by the end of 2020

The new development in Lacombe located on the corner of Highway 12 and Highway 2 on the west side of the city is gearing up for construction to prepare for a couple of new businesses. The development, called the Midway Centre, has completed infrastructure development and is now ready for the construction buildings and new businesses. 

Right now, YFL Development’s Kanwal Sandhu is looking for locals in the area interested in opening a business in this area of the city. […]

Lowe’s strikes deal to build $120-million Calgary distribution centre

CALGARY — Lowe’s Canada says work will start this month on a new distribution centre located northeast of Calgary designed to improve its in-store and online operations in Western Canada.

The company says the project will cost about $120 million, with investment shared with Calgary-based real estate developer Highfield Investment Group.

The 114,000-square-metre facility is expected to open in the fall of 2021, joining several other recently built distribution centres — including Amazon, Walmart and Costco — in Rocky View County near the Calgary […]