Council receives first draft of 2025 proposed budget

Lloydminster, AB/SK – Lloydminster City Council received the first draft of the 2025 proposed municipal budget during a Governance and Priorities Committee meeting on Wednesday, October 30, 2024. 

The budget presentation, led by City Administration, outlined the municipality’s current financial position, while also identifying capital projects and operational goals proposed for 2025. Administration also highlighted fiscal challenges, and expanded on potential impact for Lloydminster ratepayers. 

The proposed operating budget is $110 million and the proposed capital budget is $51.8 million.  

Key projects from the proposed 2025 capital budget include: 

Administration has put forward a municipal tax increase of 4.5% and an anticipated assessment growth of 2.5%, equating to $3.23 million, this includes $2.3 million in enhancements to Protective Services.Inflation and carbon tax continue to be among the the City’s most significant challenges in balancing costs of essential services and infrastructure programs. Additionally, Lloydminster continues to advocate for the restoration of provincial funding amounts, which have diminished since 2020. 

Assuming a 4.5% increase in the municipal tax levy, a Lloydminster homeowner with an assessed property value of $350,000 would pay an additional $120 in municipal taxes in 2025. 

The draft budget presentation is available for the public to view on the City website, www.lloydminster.ca. 

Quotes 

“As our City population has surpassed 33,000, we have made significant and necessary capital investment in recent years, including a new a wastewater treatment plant, a new fire hall, and – more recently – the construction of the indoor ice and event facility, Cenovus Energy Hub,” said Mayor Gerald Aalbers. “While these projects ensure Lloydminster’s viability and enhance quality of life, they also require our municipal leaders to develop detailed, long-term financial plans to pay down debt and continue to address our city’s most critical infrastructure needs. What we see in the first draft of the 2025 budget reassures Council that Administration is moving strategically to address our most pressing financial challenges while also planning for the future.” 

Mayor Gerald S. Aalbers, City of Lloydminster 

“Each year, Administration carefully evaluates our financial current position and works to identify that factors we can control, and those we cannot. We then work to build a plan that reflects Council’s priorities for moving our city forward,” said City Manager Dion Pollard. “While the challenges are many, we are encouraged by the demonstrable progress made in long-term financial planning, supported by a detailed asset management plans. This work is already providing Administration with data that helps to plan more effectively year over year, allowing us to map important projects on a 10-year horizon.” 

Dion Pollard, City Manager, City of Lloydminster 

Background 

Prior to the compilation of the draft budget, the City of Lloydminster embarked on an eight-week public engagement campaign to collect input from residents and businesses prior to fall budget deliberations. In addition to the 314 responses gathered through the online survey, City Council and Administration engaged informally with more than 500 people during a series of public engagement events between June 7 and August 5, 2024. 
 
Next steps 
Following the first-draft presentation on October 30, and the municipal election on November 13, Administration will bring forward the proposed 2025 budget to the newly elected Council on November 25, after which Council may choose to approve the budget or request further information. If further revisions are needed, a contingency approval date is scheduled for mid-December.In accordance with the Lloydminster Charter, Council must adopt an operating and capital budget for each financial year (January 1 to December 31). Alternatively, Council may adopt an interim budget for part of a financial year.