The City of Lloydminster is celebrating a pair of wins for its top elected official.
Lloydminster Mayor Gerald Aalbers has been elected to represent Saskatchewan as chair of the Saskatchewan City Mayor’s caucus and the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) board of directors.
Read more: Aalbers seeks election for FCM board
“I’ve been re-elected for a full one-year term, which will be up for re-election next year if I choose to seek that for a two-year term,” he said.
Aalbers says it’s important to have been elected to these two positions.
“I think its important we have that ability to have a voice, whatever level, including federal level,” he said.
Most recently, the City of Lloydminster travelled to the FCM’s annual conference and trade show in Ottawa, Ont.
The conference gave the city a chance to connect with elected officials.
“I think FCM gave us an opportunity. I had the pleasure, being in Ottawa to meet with both of our MP’s as well as our new minister of agriculture and chatting a little bit about sandwich gate and the challenges we have of bi-provincial city,” said Aalbers.
Sandwich gate being the issue of interprovincial trade of food from one side of the Lloydminster border to the other.
Aalbers heard issues from other municipalities that sounded much like what the Border City is dealing with.
“It was interesting to hear the challenges we continue to face and discuss here at city hall are challenges (other) communities are facing,” he said.
The biggest issue still being the challenge of maintaining and developing infrastructure.
“A challenge of municipalities, we maintain 60 per cent of the infrastructure in Canada and its challenging to continue to maintain that infrastructure as costs continue to rise,” said Aalbers.
“Either taxpayers have to pay for it, developers have to be charged, or we hope the government that’s been collecting taxes from a number of different fronts will support our initiatives accordingly.”
The FCM Annual Conference and Trade Show ran from May 29 to June 1 with elected officials from across the country coming together to discuss key issues.
Read more: FCM election motion passed, again
