New opportunities are in the works for the public to offer feedback on development and infrastructure plans at the City of Medicine Hat, a committee heard Thursday.--NEWS FILE PHOTO
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The city’s new development and infrastructure committee met for its first meeting of the new term Thursday.
City staff briefed the committee on projects in the works and initiatives to come on subjects like water, waste and transportation.
Couns. Yusuf Mohammad, Cheryl Pfaff and Dan Reynish sit on the development and infrastructure committee. Mayor Linnsie Clark also joined the meeting.
City staff provided members an update on the Transportation Master Plan, which was taken off the table for the last council’s consideration following a motion to postpone at a September council meeting. The postponement was intended to provide an opportunity for further public consultation related to the plans.
Public engagement strategies were a major topic of discussion at the committee meeting.
Acting director of municipal works Sandeep Pareek outlined channels of communication the city is pursuing to facilitate public consultation, including updates to the project webpage and a new “share your story” feature asking residents to provide feedback related to the city’s transportation network.
They will also be introducing an online public survey, which Pareek says is under development and is expected to launch in January or February.
He said further outreach may be planned based on the results of the survey. A report based on the engagement will be returned to council at the end of the first quarter of 2026.
Managing director of development and infrastructure Pat Bohan added that city staff have been adapting transportation strategies to reflect previous engagement. Changes made so far include phasing out bike lanes in favour of more multi-use pathways.
Staff also indicated to councillors they will be approaching council early next year for a budget increase of $14,000 for the Heron Crossing multi-use trail. The initial budget for that project was $70,000.
Other updates pertained to the ongoing discussions about food composting. City staff said they have received cost estimates from the service provider for the regional landfill in Redcliff. They are currently undergoing a cost analysis which they expect to issue to council before the end of the second quarter of 2026.
Bohan also informed the committee the residuals project at the city’s water treatment plant has been completed. The provincially mandated project was designed to reduce the amount of partially processed water and purify unused water before it is returned to the river.
