Blaine Hyggen looks back on first 100 days as Lethbridge’s Mayor

READ MORE: Baine Hyggen conducts first State of the City address as mayor of Lethbridge

His State of the City can be viewed below.

(Video: CityofLethbridge on YouTube)

Friday, February 4 marks day 102 of Hyggen’s tenure as the city’s mayor. He said it has been a “great honour and privilege” to serve the citizens of Lethbridge in the first 100 days.

“At the swearing-in ceremony last fall, U said that I want our Council to be a source of continued optimism and that we will address the concerns of all of our residents. I believe our fresh outlook is evident in the work we have already done or commenced.”

In its recently announced ‘Gateway to Opportunity 2022 Action Plan’, Council pledged an approach that clearly articulates its priorities, creates transparency, reports performance and builds trust with the community.

In a media call, Hyggen highlighted some of the work that has been done over the last 100 days.

Supporting provincial partners in health care with family physician recruitment and retention
- Hyggen noted that at the Cultural and Social Standing Policy Committee (SPC) meeting on December 1, a resolution was passed to refer this item to the City Manager to continue developing an action plan to be brought back to Council at a future meeting, in recruiting and retaining physicians to the city and local area.
Meetings with Ministers
- Hyggen was able to speak with the Minister of Community and Social Services Jason Luan at the Alberta Municipalities conference about the need to get moving on resources and services needed in the community. Hyggen has also spoken with provincial Health Minister Jason Copping, Minister of Seniors and Housing Josephine Pon and Minister of Children’s Services Rebecca Schulz.
Addiction recovery
- The mayor recently met with Associate Minister of Mental Health & Addictions Mike Ellis to discuss services related to addictions and mental health in the community. Hyggen has also met with the Fresh Start Recovery Centre.
Crime prevention strategies
- Hyggen noted that in addition to the on-going work of the Lethbridge Police Commission, he has regular meetings with Lethbridge Police Service Chief Shahin Mehdizadeh to discuss strategies to address safety concerns in the community.
EMS dispatch
- Mayor Hyggen has previously stated that, “we still believe that a third-party review is required to investigate what has happened in the past, what is currently happening today and ensure accountability going forward. We’ll be further investigating options that will help us elevate this issue and protect the safety of our residents.” Concerns have been raised about the effects of the consolidation of 911 EMS dispatch services.
Establishing an Indigenous Resource Hub
- On February 1, Council voted unanimously in favour on the Community Wellbeing and Safety Strategy (CWSS) funding allocation approval for an Indigenous Resources Hub, including $496,248 in annual funding (from provincial and federal grants), leveraged from Outreach Support Services Initiative (OSSI) & Reaching Home (RH), to be allocated to the Blood Tribe/Kainai Nation to deliver the Indigenous Resource Hub services.
A review of the cityLINK transit system
- On February 3, after getting more feedback from the public before proceeding with any further decisions and direction, the Civic Works SPC directed this matter to a future council meeting.
Airport Incentive framework
- On January 18, Council voted to approve a new Airport Incentive Framework to discuss potential agreements with airlines regarding future options for passengers flying in and out of the Lethbridge Airport.
Third bridge update
- On December 14, Council voted unanimously to have City Administration investigate further into the potential location of a possible third bridge over the Oldman River in Lethbridge. Council has asked Administration to report the findings by September 2022. Hyggen has also met with the Minister of Environment and Parks, Jason Nixon, to discuss the environmental process for a potential development in and around the coulees.
Investigate the possibility of moving to a ‘ward’ electoral system
- On February 1, Council has asked Administration to report back, through the Governance Standing Policy Committee, by April 30, on what legislative requirements, engagement, timelines, costs and resources it would take to potentially implement a ward system.
Mayor’s Community Hockey Challenge
- The event in December, which saw City of Lethbridge staff lace up their skates against community partners, collected about 615 pounds of food donations and gifts, plus almost $3,000 in financial donations, for local food banks. In all, the hockey game raised an estimated total of $4,500.

When asked by LNN what the transition from councillor to mayor has been like, Hyggen said time management has been the biggest adjustment for him.

He said, “I really like to stay in touch personally with every single person that reaches out to me and the toughest part that I’ve found is that timeline. It’s so tough to connect with every single person as quickly as I like to.”

“There’s literally a couple hundred emails that come in a day and calls. That’s been the toughest part, to be honest with you, is just trying to reach back out to the citizens that have reached out to me, because I do want to be transparent, I want to be open, I want to be accessible and sometimes it’s just difficult to do it in as quick of a way that I generally like to do.”

The mayor said a lot of the highlights he listed are plans of action that are in the on-going or just beginning stages, and he’s hoping to keep conversations going with community partners on various projects in the works.

“I’d like to say that we completed things in the first 100 days, but we’ve got those things rolling and I just want to make sure we stay behind them and continue moving forward.”

by Justin Goulet

Blaine Hyggen looks back on first 100 days as Lethbridge’s Mayor

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