Greetings my dear Red Deerians, and welcome back to the Mayor’s Blog. I want to talk to you today about our growth prospects, where I believe opportunity presents itself and where, once again, Red Deer’s spirit of collaboration and innovation can set us apart as a chosen destination.
No doubt, you may have heard Premier Smith speak of her vision for Red Deer being Alberta’s next city of a million people. When I first heard this, I began to reflect on what that might look like, what impact it would have, and how we might set out to accomplish the task. Being a former banker, I calculated that at our current population of 110,000 people, at a growth rate of 5 per cent every year, it would take 44 years to get to a million.
Keeping pace with the wants and needs of a growing population will require much planning, much collaboration and much focus for all levels of government and all facets of our community. All our social, health, economic and culture sectors will need to be fully engaged. Growth brings many challenges making many of us uneasy that our quality of life may be reduced. My experience with the growth in Alberta these past 44 years encourages me, as it should you, that success is achievable.
Alternatively, if you consider our trading area of 250,000 people, it would take 28 years for the region to reach one million. Seems like a lot of years but depending on your age, you could certainly be a part of that milestone. After all, when I came to Calgary in 1981, it had a population of 594,000. Today, it has 1,665,000, an increase of over a million people in 43 years – it can be done!
Just as oil and gas provided the catalyst for the growth of Calgary and all Alberta, Red Deer will need it’s own catalysts to accomplish the same. And the great news is, they are emerging and developing today. I speak firstly of the new Regional Hospital which will be breaking ground, I believe, in 2025. This two-billion-dollar project will bring an immense wave of employment, capital and economic activity to the city and the region. As it builds out, it will attract all levels of health care professionals, developers, post secondary expansions, retailers, food services, social and finance infrastructure, investors and the list goes on. It will transform Capstone and the downtown. It will propel 11A annexation and North of 11A.
Once completed, we will have a world class medical facility, unmatched by any in the province. In combination with the Sheldon Kennedy Centre for Excellence, the Justice Centre and the technology, trades and medical programming at the Red Deer Polytechnic, we are positioned to become a central hub in the province for research, innovation, and training excellence.
I mentioned energy as a catalyst for growth in Alberta. Our traditional energy resources of oil and gas remain vital and are now complimented by advances in wind, solar, hydrogen and carbon capture technologies. Red Deer and the region are very well positioned to become a provincial leader in these technologies.
The future of the Red Deer Regional Airport is bright, which will also be a contributor in the province. Our natural environment will become an even greater attractant for people who want to connect and reconnect with nature. We have a uniqueness in our work/life balance. More people are seeing and wanting to be part of the Red Deer scene. I haven’t even mentioned our sports amenities, our vibrant cultural landscape and our tourism sector, all poised to carry us forward.
The greatest opportunity lies, I believe, in the development of a high-speed rail corridor. The Edmonton/Calgary corridor is one of the fastest growing and wealthiest regions in Canada. A high-speed rail linkage with a stop in Red Deer, as has been proposed, would transform Red Deer’s economic and social future. It would be possible to work in the metro centers and live in Red Deer. A shorter commute time to work from 150 kilometers, than from 30 kilometers – yes it will happen! The supply chain impact will be monumental for Alberta and Red Deer will be its prime beneficiary.
Growth brings opportunity, it brings collaboration, creativity and enterprise. Managed well, it fosters community and generational success. A million-person city? I believe it can be done and will be done by the Red Deer we are, and yet to be.
Until next time,
Mayor Ken Johnston