City councillors have approved a funding grant that will open in April for downtown proprietary owners and businesses to enhance safety and crime prevention measures. Coun. Chris Hellman speaks Monday during a public meeting at city hall.--NEWS PHOTO BRENDAN MILLER
bmiller@medicinehatnews.com
Property and business owners downtown can now apply for new funding made available by the city to purchase property improvements that enhance safety and crime prevention measures.
City councillors unanimously approved a total of $70,000 available in 2026 to provide downtown properties a 50 per cent matching grant from between $250 to $5,000 for eligible projects on a first-come, first-served basis.
The Downtown Enhancement and Safety Grant is targeted toward security and safety enhancements, including exterior security lighting, fencing, shutters, shatter-proof glass, bars, gates and cameras. Other improvements may also be considered.
To qualify for a grant applicants must have ownership in the eligible property with a current business licence, and must not be in debt with municipal taxes, utilities or any other municipal charges.
Applications can be completed online on the city’s Economic Development webpage beginning on Apr. 13, and will be accepted until the program runs out of funding.
According to a city survey, 43 per cent of businesses downtown reported being impacted by vandalism or mischief, with 30 per cent of respondents reporting multiple occurrences.
Additionally, more than 70 per cent of all businesses in the core expressed an interest in the city implementing more crime prevention through environmental design improvements.
“While the problem is not limited to the downtown, it is particularly acute in the downtown,” said Coun. Bill Cocks.
The funding grant will only apply to businesses and properties located downtown, however Coun. Ted Clugston expressed concerns about geographic limits.
“These problems aren’t limited to downtown,” said Clugston, who shared concerns over excluding businesses and properties in communities that surround the core.
“I just would say if I was on Kingsway, or even Eighth Street in Crescent Heights, I would go, ‘Where’s my share to help me with my security problems?'”
City staff say the grant funding was recently discussed at a Community Resilience and Inclusivity Task Force meeting while looking at a crime map, and chose to focus funding downtown.
“I think the consensus was there would be a more noticeable impact if we focused it on a particular area,” said acting city manager Joseph Hutter. “But there are certainly some strong arguments that this could be expanded to other areas.”
Coun. Chris Hellman said he would be willing to look at expanding funding moving forward, while Mayor Linnsie Clark suggested modifications could be made following the first round of approvals.
“Perhaps this could be viewed as a bit of a trail and then tweaked and broadened if that is the will of council.” said Clark.
Councillors also approved $30,000 to hire a third-party provider to improve downtown cleanliness.
Tax sale approval
Properties or designated manufactured homes with tax arrears greater than one year will face auction on Mar. 31.
Council approved the reserve bid, or minimum sale price, as well as sale conditions for properties with arrears dating to 2023.
This approval for the public tax sale auction meets Municipal Government Act requirements, as each year prior to Mar. 31 municipalities must register properties or designated manufactured homes that have not paid taxes.
Staff say they are willing to work with property owners up until the last day to come to a solution, including providing payment plans for up to a two-year period.
“So the city’s goal is not to auction off any properties; this is sort of a last resort,” said Hellman.
If arrears are not paid the city must offer for sale any parcel of land or designated manufactured home by public tax auction anytime after Mar. 31.
