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Regional Roundup
July 15, 2026

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Sturgeon County residents call for transparency on data centres

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Some residents of Sturgeon County say there hasn't been enough public input on Meta's $13-billion AI data centre, to be built at 56111 Range Road 223 in Alberta's Industrial Heartland. "Residents deserve transparency, meaningful consultation, and careful consideration before decisions of this magnitude move forward," Maddie Hoffmann told the St. Albert Gazette. The closest properties to the site's address are a farm, about 1.2 kilometres away, and a small residential community about 4.3 kilometres away. Leo Morawski, who lives 15 kilometres away from the site, said that while he isn't necessarily opposed to the project, he expected open house forums to discuss what it entails. "You have to tell your rate-payers what's going in their backyard," Morawski told Global News. "You can't just ignore the fact and hope that they're going to live with it and be happy about it."

Sturgeon County Mayor Alanna Hnatiw said there was a chance for public input when the county's zoning bylaw was updated to add data centres in 2022 and when they were permitted as an industrial use in 2025. She said the project, which is already under construction, reinforces the county's role as a premier destination for industrial investment. "We are proud to welcome Meta and look forward to the long-term economic and community development opportunities this development will create for our residents and businesses," she said in a release. Meta said it will spend $60 million on local infrastructure upgrades and that the centre will generate about $250 million a year in provincial benefits through royalties, taxes, and fees. The project is expected to create 3,000 construction jobs and 300 operational jobs, and the tech giant said it will launch its Data Centre Community Action Grants for local nonprofits.

Capital Power will supply 250 megawatts of energy for the data centre until the completion of a recently approved gas-fired power plant. Katrina Ingram of Ethically Aligned AI criticized the messaging that the plant is "bring your own power" because it will run on a reallocation of power sources for up to a decade. The facility will use a closed-loop, liquid-cooling system that Meta says will minimize water use, though Ingram noted that such a system uses more energy.

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Economic development

  • The Alberta government is investing $37 million through Emissions Reduction Alberta's Drilling Technology Challenge to support 10 projects — worth nearly $179 million combined — aimed at improving drilling efficiency and safety in oil and gas, geothermal, and critical mineral development. Two Nisku-based projects received funding: $3.1 million for Calgary's Precision Drilling for a project to demonstrate robotic automation and pipe-handling to improve drilling, and $2.6 million for Ontario-based CleanDesign's project to demonstrate software that optimizes drilling power use. Edmonton's Phase Advanced Sensor Systems received $420,000 to develop and test high-temperature downhole pressure sensors for geothermal wells.
  • Capital Power CEO Avik Dey contributed to a publication about Canada's ability to fill a gap in the global supply of GenAI compute capacity. "AI infrastructure will be one of the most consequential assets of the next decade, and the world is not going to build enough of it. The deficit is a function of long lead times, constrained power and land in dense markets, and an appetite for compute capacity that is outrunning supply," the publication said. "For Canada, that gap is not a threat. It is a market."
  • Sherritt International Corp. says it needs significant new capital to restart its Fort Saskatchewan refinery and Cuban joint venture after both were shut down amid U.S. pressure on Cuba. The Toronto-based mining company is in talks with lenders over recapitalization and has signed a non-binding agreement with Gillon Capital LLC — linked to a former Trump administration adviser — for a potential majority stake purchase.
  • AIRmarket has completed proof-of-concept testing of its remote traffic management technologies in Three Hills, alongside SAIT's CIRUS team. "This prepares us to operationally launch in a wildfire scenario in the coming days," the company posted on LinkedIn.
  • Indigenous business association Aksis is collaborating with RUNWITHIT Synthetics to map the urban Indigenous economy and better support more than 90,000 underserved Indigenous people in Edmonton. The project is seeking Indigenous entrepreneurs and organizations to participate.
  • The Edmonton Region Hydrogen HUB pushed back on the idea that heavy freight decarbonization is a race between battery-electric and hydrogen technologies, arguing that Alberta's long distances, severe winters, and industrial activity require a mix of solutions rather than a single winning technology.

Municipalities

  • The City of Spruce Grove says the province's pause on integrated Fire-EMS procurement does not change its position that ambulance services are a provincial responsibility. The city is continuing transition planning with Emergency Health Services Alberta following council's decision not to fund the additional cost of the ground ambulance service agreement.
  • Leduc city council adopted its 2027-2030 strategic plan centred on safe community, responsible growth, strong foundations, and regional partnerships, developed during a year in which the city grew three times faster than projected. Mayor Lars Hansen said the plan will be reflected in budgets, projects, and service decisions.
  • Feedback on Leduc's new land use bylaw reflects a desire for new housing options, more gathering places, and minimal changes to parking regulations. The bylaw renewal project was extended to early 2027 for further refinement.
  • St. Albert councillors said they're concerned that proposed amendments to the city's zoning bylaw would negatively impact housing affordability and infrastructure.
  • Stony Plain has gathered hundreds of responses in its engagement on its new municipal development plan. "Community members love the character and small-town atmosphere, pathways and connections, local businesses, downtown, recreation opportunities, their fellow community members, and so much more," the town said. "As a team, we are excited to dive further into these ideas and explore how they can form our future community plan."
  • The City of Spruce Grove is changing how it maintains Pioneer Cemetery starting on Oct. 30. Crews will remove non-permitted items as part of scheduled site maintenance. The city requests that families collect personal tributes — including fences, statues and flowerpots — before that date. Uncollected items will be catalogued and stored for a year, and any newly placed, non-permitted items will be removed during weekly maintenance and stored.

Headlines

  • Beaumont led population growth in the Edmonton region in the first half of 2026, with population growing by 6.3%, according to an Avison Young report. Leduc County (4.7%) and Spruce Grove (4.2%) also saw significant increases, driven largely by interprovincial migration from Ontario and B.C. Multifamily rental construction reached 10,151 units in 2025 — more than double the 10-year average — though Q1 2026 starts fell 17% year-over-year as the market absorbed recent supply.
  • BILD Edmonton Metro highlighted Leduc's rapid residential growth, with more than 1,500 new lots approved in 2025 — five times the typical annual number — driven in part by the new 65th Avenue interchange, which opened up employment and residential land near the Edmonton International Airport. The city's population is projected to triple to about 138,000 by 2077.
  • The federal government and the Manitou Asinîy-Iniskim-Tsa Xani Centre signed an agreement to move the Manitou Stone — a 145-kilogram iron meteorite sacred to many First Nations — from the Royal Alberta Museum in Edmonton to a new centre on a former golf course in Elk Island National Park. The First Nations-led, not-for-profit organization will independently fundraise for the building while seeking support from the federal and provincial governments.
  • Strathcona County is welcoming more than 2,200 participants for the 2026 Alberta Summer Games from July 16 to 19. The event features 13 sports, including the return of golf and tennis for the first time in 20 years, plus a live mural jam at Millennium Place.
  • Fort Saskatchewan Minor Baseball has received a $3,000 tourism hosting grant to support the 2026 U11 AA Provincial Championships from July 24 to 26.
  • Strathcona County is inviting Canadian artists to apply for multiple public art opportunities at the new Strathcona County Fieldhouse, including exterior and interior locations. Portfolio submissions are due Sept. 30.
  • A park in northwest Leduc's Woodbend neighbourhood has been officially named W.E. Hawkins Park, honouring the city's ninth mayor and local hardware store owner.
  • Parkland County is encouraging farm operators to complete the 2026 Census of Agriculture questionnaire before the deadline.

Happenings

Here are some events coming up over the next seven days:

And here are some upcoming events to keep in mind:

Visit the Taproot Edmonton Calendar for many more events in the Edmonton region.

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