The City of Lloydminster's Mayor and council plan to cover all the bases at this week's Alberta Municipalities (ABmunis) Convention in Red Deer.
Mayor Gerald Aalbers and the entire city council will be there Sept 25-27 to network, vote on resolutions and attend breakout sessions on various topics.
"That's one of the nice things about having the entire council go, is we're able to split up and conquer many different fronts rather than send one person from council," said Aalbers on Tuesday.
"The city continues to operate without us. I'll carry on as mayor from Red Deer from that perspective."
Aalbers says the annual ABmunis Convention has a lot of spinoff benefits for the city not to be missed.
"From the perspective of information sharing between elected officials as municipal leaders, it's critical to have the opportunity to meet and learn about other communities and learn about ideas that might be brought back to Lloydminster," said Aalbers.
He says other member municipalities also look to Lloydminster for direction as a mid size city on the border with Saskatchewan.
"Because we're a bi-provincial city, I often get asked how we deliver services and programs," said Aalbers.
More importantly, he says the convention is an opportunity to interact with the government of the day including the premier and members of the opposition.
"So it's important we keep those doors opens at all times and all levels," said Aalbers.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith will address the convention on Thursday and take questions from the floor.
Each elected official from a member municipality can also discuss and vote on the 27 resolutions submitted by members.
One resolution of interest to Lloyd calls for the government to increase funding to municipal Family and Community Support Services by $25 million to support their preventative programs.
"It would be important from the perspective that any additional funds we can provide to non-profit organizations in the form of grants," said Aalbers.
"We would certainly support that."
The grant to FCSS is funded 80 per cent by the province and 20 per cent by the city.
Aalbers however, says overall, there is no particular resolutions that stands out in mind.
"Depending where the Lloydminster Charter falls, a resolution may not have a direct impact on Lloydminster," he explained.
The agenda also includes breakout sessions including a discussion on Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) as the transition to producers taking more responsibility for waste continues.
This session aims to provide a valuable opportunity to ask questions and gain a deeper understanding of the future of waste management in Alberta and what it means for municipalities.
"Certainly I know our staff, the administration has been working closely on that because we're dealing with two provincial regulations and rules dealing with that," said Aalbers.
There's also a breakout session on preparing for elections in smaller communities, but Aalbers says some of the changes to the Municipal Election Act made by Alberta are not applicable to Lloyd.
"If I have the opportunity to speak with an Alberta cabinet minister, I'd take the discussion with the cabinet minister over the election depending on what's going on," said Aalbers.
"I'll take that opportunity with our MLA to bolster our position in Lloydminster."
Read more: Collaboration key to oil output
Locally owned and community driven, the Lloydminster Meridian Source is the online news source in the Border City. Whether it’s breaking news, features or sports, if you have questions about what’s going on around town, Source it with us!
Since online platforms no longer support the sharing of news, we encourage you to bookmark meridiansource.ca. Whether you’re having a coffee or enjoying a meal, check in any time for the most up-to-date news in Lloydminster.
