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Public infrastructure decisions shape a small town’s operating costs and its capacity to serve residents. Energy projects offer concrete examples of how municipalities and partners can connect capital investment with long-term economic resilience.

Smoky Lake: municipal solar

MCCAC documents Smoky Lake’s 2021 installation of a 168.96 kW ground-mounted solar system and a $143,616 rebate. The project illustrates how a municipality can combine external funding with local capital to produce electricity for public operations. Its relevance extends beyond the equipment: it connects operating cost management with a visible community investment.

Métis Crossing: partnership at a larger scale

The Salay Prayzaan project brought together the Métis Nation of Alberta, the Town of Smoky Lake and Smoky Lake County. MCCAC awarded $3.9 million through the Municipal Community Generation Challenge. Its completed-project report records completion in 2024 and a 2025 Emerald Award. My involvement was during the Smoky Lake partnership and funding phase; completion came after my tenure.

Two Hills: investing in an existing community facility

MCCAC reports that the Two Hills arena solar installation was completed in 2026, with 336.96 kW of capacity and estimated annual electricity savings of $94,009. My Two Hills CAO service ran from 2023 to May 2026. These published savings are estimates, not a guarantee of future performance or a statement that every project milestone occurred before my departure.

Evaluate the full business case

Municipalities should examine capital costs, available grants, maintenance, equipment life, production assumptions and future electricity prices. Assess procurement and financing alongside the technical design. A sound proposal explains both the expected benefits and the conditions that could change them.

Connect infrastructure with community goals

A project becomes more useful when it supports a wider purpose: reliable facilities, manageable service costs or stronger relationships among partners. The lesson from these examples is to combine technical planning with clear responsibilities and a realistic financial case. The results belong to the councils, staff, community partners and funders whose combined work makes delivery possible.

Sources and further reading

MCCAC · Smoky Lake municipal solar

MCCAC · Salay Prayzaan at Métis Crossing

MCCAC · Two Hills arena solar

Small municipalities often face the same constraints: limited staff time, competing capital needs and a small tax base. Regional collaboration offers a practical way to build economic development capacity while preserving each community’s priorities.

Build the partnership around a shared problem

Begin with a specific barrier rather than a broad promise to cooperate. It might be incomplete information about industrial land, an employer’s recruitment challenge or a shortage of economic development expertise. Define the result the partners want, the work each will contribute and how decisions will be made.

Share capacity, with clear accountability

A shared economic development service can coordinate business outreach, investment inquiries and funding applications. To work well, it needs an agreed work plan, a budget, reporting expectations and a clear route for resolving disagreements. Partners should know what service they receive and how performance will be assessed.

Present a connected regional offer

One municipality may have suitable industrial land; another may provide housing, training or supporting services. Describing those assets together can make the region more understandable to an investor. Alberta HUB’s alliance model brings communities, educational institutions and businesses into a regional economic development network.

Use grants to build lasting capability

Alberta’s Northern and Regional Economic Development program supports projects intended to strengthen regional economies. Its Small Community Opportunity Program focuses on capacity in agriculture, small business and local economic development. Program rules and application windows can change, so partners should consult the current official pages before planning an application.

Choose practical milestones

A useful regional work plan might deliver a coordinated investment inventory, regular employer visits and a process for responding to inquiries. Measure whether information is becoming more complete, businesses are receiving useful assistance and partners are carrying out agreed actions. Grant approval is a milestone; the lasting value is the capability and follow-through it creates.

Sources and further reading

Alberta · Northern and Regional Economic Development Program

Alberta · Small Community Opportunity Program

Alberta HUB · Who we are

Alberta’s economic future is shaped in its towns and villages as well as its major cities. Rural communities connect farms, energy operations, tourism destinations and regional services with the people and businesses that keep them working. Small-town economic development strengthens those connections and creates room for new opportunities.

Start with the businesses already here

A practical local strategy begins with existing employers. Conversations with business owners can uncover expansion plans, succession challenges, workforce shortages and infrastructure barriers. Helping an established firm stay and grow can be as valuable as attracting a new one. A regular business visitation program gives municipal leaders a clearer picture of where public action will make a difference.

Make investment easier to evaluate

Investors need understandable information about land, servicing, approvals and access to markets. A community can improve its readiness by maintaining accurate property information, explaining its development process and coordinating responses across departments. The aim is to give a prospective business confidence about the next step.

Treat community services as economic assets

Housing, recreation, schools and access to health services influence whether workers and their families can settle in a community. Roads, water systems and digital connectivity support day-to-day business operations. A growth strategy should connect these needs to capital planning rather than treat economic development as a separate promotional exercise.

Work at a regional scale

A business’s customers, suppliers and employees frequently cross municipal boundaries. Shared marketing, coordinated infrastructure planning and relationships with Indigenous communities and educational institutions can expand what an individual town can offer. Alberta HUB illustrates this regional partnership approach.

Measure the results that matter

Track business retention, expansion activity, serviced land readiness and progress on identified barriers. Avoid judging success only by announcements. The practical test is whether local firms can operate more effectively and whether residents can see durable benefits. This article offers a municipal perspective informed by the sources below; it does not attribute every regional outcome to one person.

Sources and further reading

Government of Alberta · Rural economic development

Alberta HUB · Who we are

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