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Your turn: Edmonton Chamber gathers business sentiment


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This week's roundup of calls for public engagement includes a survey asking how employees, business owners, and organizational leaders feel about their businesses today and how that might change in the next year.

The Edmonton Chamber of Commerce is launching its first business sentiment index survey. The feedback will be used to shape the chamber's advocacy priorities. The chamber said it wants to hear from all businesses, not just chamber members. The survey will be open until Oct. 1.

The survey asks respondents to rate the financial health of their businesses, as well as cost pressures, external factors, and risks they're facing. It also asks them to rate how those factors have changed in the last year and how they expect them to change in the next year.

The survey goes on to ask how Alberta's long-term relationship with the federal government is affecting business planning and investment decisions, with a request to rate the seriousness of the potential economic impact of increasing Alberta-federal tensions. The chamber also asked members their thoughts on the rise of Alberta separatism earlier this year.

The survey asks businesses to explain if and how the City of Edmonton supports them. As is its mandate, the chamber has advocated in the past for more support, financial and otherwise, from the City of Edmonton. Most recently, in the wake of several high-profile business closures, it called for administration to take immediate action on downtown economic stability by expanding investment in safety, coordinating construction projects, and holding construction sites to a higher standard. It also called for financial relief through free on-street parking downtown, waived patio fees, and investment in the public realm.

The chamber will host a conversation about the municipal budget on Sept. 29. It said Edmonton is on a roll, with businesses investing more than $3.3 billion here last year. "But there's a catch — if you own a business in Edmonton, you're paying almost double what you'd pay just outside city limits for the exact same kind of property," the event page says. The chamber will reveal its analysis of city spending at the event and share the community's perspective on what needs to change for the upcoming budget.

Two men in suits smile while holding a framed photo Doug Griffiths, CEO of the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce, presented Mayor Andrew Knack with a map showing Edmonton as the centre of the globe at the State of the City address in May 2026. (Stephanie Swensrude)

Here are some other opportunities to provide input in the Edmonton metro region:

"Your turn" is Taproot's weekly collection of public engagement opportunities in the Edmonton region. Watch this space every week for opportunities to make your views known. If you know of a request for public input, send it to hello@taprootedmonton.ca.