Regional Roundup
Oct. 14, 2026

Economic development

• ATCO held an official groundbreaking for the Yellowhead Pipeline on Oct. 13. The $2.9-billion natural gas pipeline will span 235 kilometres from Peers to Fort Saskatchewan.
• Edmonton communications firm reVerb Communications has launched Data Centre Anonymous to help municipalities explain data centre applications and respond to public concerns, which are mounting across the province. CEO Quinn Nicholson said municipalities should communicate independently of project proponents and aim to reach residents who do not attend planning meetings. "A municipal government's interest is its people, and so they have to be telling and representing that side of the story," Nicholson told Taproot.
• Sean Naugle, a senior contracts officer at Canadian Forces Base Edmonton, urged startups to pursue Canadian defence contracts. He outlined potential security-clearance and tender requirements during a session at Edmonton Startup Week. Connie Stacey, founder of Grengine, said rigid bid criteria and siloed government departments could exclude firms who would otherwise be able to meet military needs. "You end up with a process that's kind of like telephone tag," Stacey said. "It gets thinner and thinner as you go through the different departments."
• Edmonton Global has named Marlenie Arana its director of trade. Her role focuses on helping businesses make connections and enter international markets.
• Stony Plain released the results of a business retention and expansion survey based on responses from 89 businesses. Nearly two-thirds of respondents expected sales growth over the next two years, while almost half intended to expand. The town expects to release an action plan in October informed by the findings.
• Premier Danielle Smith highlighted business growth at a fireside chat hosted by the Leduc, Nisku, and Wetaskiwin Regional Chamber of Commerce. Nisku-based Little Potato Company doubled its processing capacity to 125 million pounds through the agri-food producing investment tax credit, Smith said.

Municipalities

• Leduc Mayor Lars Hansen updated residents on changes to the way ambulance services will be delivered starting on Oct. 30 as Emergency Health Services takes over the service. Earlier this year, the province announced it would reduce funding for ambulance contracts with seven municipalities that operate integrated fire-paramedic services. The municipalities would have had to cover the shortfall or turn ambulance operations over to another provider, but the province paused the change after pushback and extended the transition to 2028-2029. The cities of Leduc and Spruce Grove chose to transition away from operating ambulances, while St. Albert and Strathcona County chose to keep the integrated model and absorb the funding gap. Hansen said the proposed provincial contract would have cost taxpayers $1 million a year and included scheduling requirements that were not compatible with the collective agreement with the International Association of Fire Fighters Local 4739.
• Jallal Tarrabain, president of the Muslim Association of St. Albert, said he is disappointed after the Alberta Court of Appeal permitted an appeal concerning the organization's proposed Campbell Business Park mosque. "We've been here for decades, there's a large Muslim community in St. Albert that we need to serve," he said. "The existing location that we're in right now is not suitable for what we need."
• The Town of Morinville has won a Minister's Award for community engagement. The Engage Morinville site has recorded more than 32,000 visits since launching in January 2022; online engagement is complemented by in-person opportunities.
• The City of St. Albert began a one-year trial of a digital traffic sign at Gate Avenue and St. Albert Trail. The sign allows left turns on green lights during overnight, low-traffic hours, provided that drivers yield to traffic and pedestrians.
• Adaptive traffic signals will go live at 12 intersections in Spruce Grove during the week of Oct. 13. The city said the system adjusts timing to real-time traffic along Highway 16A and Jennifer Heil Way.
• Sturgeon County has opened the replacement Victoria Trail Bridge over the Redwater River, with a total project budget of $3.4 million. About 70% of the project costs were covered by Sil Minerals, which operates on the north side of the bridge.
• Sturgeon County launched its digital permitting system, making it easier to apply for permits and manage applications online.
• Your turn, Taproot's weekly batch of calls for public engagement, includes applications to serve on boards and committees in Leduc, Fort Saskatchewan, and Stony Plain.

Headlines

• The provincial government committed $12.5 million for renovations at the Fort Saskatchewan Community Hospital to increase surgical capacity by nearly 50%.
• Best Hydrate in Sherwood Park has developed a sports drink that could also help people with Crohn's disease. Co-founder and CEO Austin Swiniarski told CBC's Edmonton AM about how hydration products helped him avoid surgery for the condition, inspiring him to create his own version. He worked with chief scientific officer Spencer Proctor, chair of agricultural, food, and nutritional science at the University of Alberta, on Best Hydrate. "By keeping it simple, we can keep costs down while still being able to ensure the science is exactly where it needs to be," Proctor said.
• Former Wabamun mayor Bill Purdy received a special recognition award from Alberta Municipalities, celebrating his 40 years of involvement in the municipal sector.
• Audie Benson has retired after about 35 years of posting messages on the sign outside of St. Albert's Red Willow Community Church. Benson's messages, visible to people driving on Campbell Road and Corriveau Avenue, ranged from cheeky to inspirational to religious, and he said St. Albert residents often wrote to the church thanking him.
• St. Albert is inviting residents to register accessible and allergy-friendly trick-or-treating locations on its Halloween map. Residents can add ground-level or curbside treat stations and homes offering non-edible treats.
• Leduc-area school boards have added suicide and traumatic-event response procedures to a violence threat risk assessment protocol first created in 2014. Black Gold School Division student services director Niki Gill said the change allows the district to be proactive and build trust.
• Ronald Harvey Elementary in St. Albert has opened an accessible playground extension with $100,000 grants from both the city and the province. Playground chair Jillian MacDonald said contractors' donations of materials and labour saved money for the next phase.
• About 30 volunteers near Legal harvested 145 acres of wheat for the Canadian Foodgrains Bank. Volunteer Don de Champlain estimated the crop would raise about $100,000 for the charity.

Happenings

Here are some events coming up soon:

• Oct. 14: Business on the Base starting at 9am at Canadian Forces Base Edmonton
• Oct. 14: Bioeconomy Guild Night starting at 5pm at MKT Fresh Food | Beer Market
• Oct. 15: Regional Economic Development Summit starting at 7:30am at Matrix Hotel
• Oct. 15: YEG Sponsorship Socials - Part IV starting at 4pm at CKUA
• Oct. 15: Business Awards of Distinction Gala starting at 6pm at Heritage Park Pavilion in Stony Plain
• Oct. 16-29: STARFest at St. Albert Public Library (Downtown)
• Oct. 17: Day of Protest- St. Albert starting at 11:30am at the Pedestrian Bridge on St. Albert Trail
• Oct. 17: Day of Protest - Spruce Grove starting at 12pm at Columbus Park
• Oct. 17: Day of Protest - Fort Sask starting at 2pm at Veterans Way
• Oct. 19: Business Excellence Breakfast starting at 7:15am at Little White School House
• Oct. 19-23: Small Business Week at various locations
• Oct. 20: Future Forward: 2026 Business Conference starting at 9am at Strathcona County Community Centre
• Oct. 20: SBW 2026: Small Business, Bold Moves starting at 4:30pm at Pendennis Building
• Oct. 20: Thoughtful Tuesday - Code Red: An Exploration of Degrowth Economics starting at 6pm at Earth's Refillery Coop

And here are more to keep in mind:

• Oct. 22: Business Excellence Awards of Distinction at Glendale Golf & Country Club
• Oct. 22: 2026 Alumni Awards starting at 7pm at Horowitz Theatre
• Oct. 23: Build and Grow: Take Your Business to the Next Level at Heavy Metal Place

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