The City of Lethbridge will get more infrastructure funding next year than it got in 2024. (Photo: Lethbridge News Now)

By David Opinko

Lethbridge to get more infrastructure funding in 2025, but still less than former program

Oct 9, 2024 | 1:11 PM

LETHBRIDGE, AB – The City of Lethbridge has provided an update on how much provincial money it will receive for infrastructure projects.

The Government of Alberta is set to send $820 million to municipalities in 2025-26 for infrastructure, an increase of more than 13 per cent compared to 2024-25.

The province will begin to tie funding under the Local Government Fiscal Framework (LGFF) to provincial revenues this coming year. Since there was an increase in revenues this past year, communities such as Lethbridge will see more money flowing their way.

The city will receive an estimated $14,272,235 in capital dollars in 2025, which is more than 15 per cent higher than the $12,323,649 it got in 2024.

Before the LGFF came into effect in 2024-25, the Alberta Government had a similar program called the Municipal Sustainability Initiative (MSI).

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A spokesperson from the city says they got an average of $21 million per year between 2012 and 2021 from the MSI.

They say current projects that are approved under the 2022-2031 Capital Improvement Program (CIP) are fully funded up to the end of 2026.

“City Administration was aware of the possible reduction in provincial funding, therefore the 2024 and 2025 projections for LGFF were estimated conservatively, and the current LGFF allocation will have no impact on these projects,” reads a statement from the City of Lethbridge.

Potentially starting in 2027, the municipality says its capital budget will “encounter pressures for capital investment,” and therefore, projects will need to be prioritized.

READ MORE: Municipal infrastructure funding now tied to provincial revenues

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