Red Deer District Chamber Response to City of Red Deer’s 2026 Budget Strategy Update

The Red Deer District Chamber acknowledges The City of Red Deer’s efforts to stabilize its financial position and appreciates the transparent communication surrounding the 2026 budget strategy. We are encouraged by the City's stated intention to minimize tax increases, safeguard reserves, and maintain essential services while pursuing long-term financial health through its Financial Roadmap initiative.
 
As the voice of Red Deer’s business community for over 130 years, the Chamber remains deeply concerned about the compounding pressures faced by local businesses; rising operating costs, labour shortages, and inflation - now amplified by successive tax increases. While the City’s intention to keep future tax increases aligned with historical averages is appreciated, our members have been clear: sustainability must be driven by fiscal discipline, service prioritization, and innovative solutions, not taxation alone.
 
Our 2024 budget focus group and membership survey provided clear guidance: fiscal restraint, operational efficiency, and service prioritization must be the cornerstones of any budget strategy. More than 84% of surveyed businesses indicated that The City should focus on cost-cutting and efficiency improvements, and only 13% supported tax increases to maintain service levels. These results reflect a collective belief that transformational change - not incremental adjustments - is required to realign revenues with expenditures.
 
The Chamber strongly supports Council’s recent discussions emphasizing budgetary discipline and we commend the call for an evaluation of which services the City should continue to deliver, and encourage the Financial Roadmap to offer bold, evidence-based recommendations on core versus non-core activities. We applaud The City’s willingness to shift its approach to municipally operated services, such as Economic Development and the Electrical Utility, to ensure Red Deer is positioned to compete in a dynamic and evolving economic landscape. These are important steps in aligning service delivery with long-term competitiveness.
 
We urge The City to act swiftly and decisively. The City’s reliance on reserve funds, utility dividends, and rising operational costs must be addressed through structural reform - not deferred through short-term solutions. We support measures that enhance service delivery through innovation, explore public-private partnerships, and examine opportunities to divest or lease underutilized public assets. In addition, we strongly urge The City to prioritize opportunities to raise non-tax revenue through the sale or lease of underutilized assets. Doing so will help replenish critical reserves and create much-needed fiscal flexibility to invest in foundational areas like Economic Development, transportation, and core infrastructure - all of which are essential for business confidence and future investment.
The Chamber remains committed to working collaboratively with The City of Red Deer to ensure a fiscally sustainable future. We are confident that through strategic focus, transparent engagement, and bold decision-making, Red Deer can emerge stronger, more resilient, and more competitive, which will be of benefit to both citizens and the business community.
 
Let us work together to ensure that Red Deer remains a vibrant, growing city where businesses can thrive, and residents can count on essential, high-quality services which are delivered efficiently and responsibly.