Overall, the RMWB is expected to collect more than $505 million in municipal property taxes. This is a $45 million increase from the 2024 budget. Laurie Farquharson, the RMWB’s chief financial officer, warned this increase has happened while property tax revenue has dropped in recent years.
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The party that forms the next government must prioritize the needs of Fort McMurray Wood Buffalo and the oilsands, argued the region’s mayor and executive director of the chamber of commerce.
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Keyano College is laying off staff, merging positions with existing vacancies and restructuring other jobs in every department ahead of its budget for the 2024-25 academic year. Buyouts and early retirements have also been offered to employees.
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This past winter may have been snowier and wetter than last season, but the wildfire risk for April and May is considered “average” by the federal government, council was told at a Tuesday meeting. This is also the current assessment for spring flooding in Fort McMurray.
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Unemployment in the Wood Buffalo–Cold Lake census region held steady at 5.4 per cent in March, the same as in February, according to Statistics Canada data released Friday. Employment rose slightly to 67.7 per cent from February’s 66.9 per cent.
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As the winter thaws, workers will soon unpack the McMurray Métis Cultural Centre after construction halted in 2022. The site has been boarded up and winterized after financial and logistic problems forced a new team of project planners to hit pause on the project, but construction is scheduled to resume this spring and the centre is expected to open sometime in 2027.
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Paige Cyr and her realtor team at The Agency Fort McMurray have had a busy start to the year. After years of a stagnant market, home sales in February jumped and housing prices are slowly creeping upwards. She is even in the middle of some bidding wars. She agrees with Mayor Sandy Bowman’s predictions that the upcoming 2025 census will show there are more families in Fort McMurray compared to the 2021 census.
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The Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo (RMWB) is reviewing its recently passed sign bylaw after businesses and sign operators complained about the changes made to how portable signs are used.
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The Alberta government sees “significant potential” for a tourism industry in the Fort McMurray Wood Buffalo region, according to a report from Travel Alberta. The report also found Fort McMurray Wood Buffalo ranks last for preparedness out of 10 other Alberta regions outside Edmonton and Calgary.
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The Alberta government is investing $311 million in highway projects in northern Alberta during the next three years, with most of that funding going towards projects connecting the Fort McMurray Wood Buffalo region.
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