Lacombe County was revealed publicly as the proposed future home of multi-billion dollar power plants and a data centre in late 2024.
That massive potential investment ranks among the year's highlights for Reeve Barb Shepherd.
"We're so excited about that. I mean I can't overstate how exciting that is for us. It's a pretty big deal," said Shepherd, who was re-elected reeve by council for a fourth one-year term in November.
Last month, KALiNA Distributed Power Ltd. representatives gave Lacombe County council a sneak peak at its plans for two 170-megawatt power generation plants, one in the Gilby area north of Eckville and the other in Division 4, which surrounds the City of Lacombe to the north.
Each would cost about $1 billion to build and the data centre, which would be next to the Division 4 plant would cost about the same.
The company expects to file for the necessary regulatory approvals in the second quarter of 2025. A final investment decision and a construction start would happen in the third quarter of 2026 and the plants would be in service by fall 2029.
In June, the county got an opportunity to showcase the innovation happening within its borders to a delegation of about 30 international ambassadors from Europe, Asia, Africa, South America, the Caribbean, the Middle East, and New Zealand.
They were given tours of Nova Chemicals at Joffre and PACE Canada's nearby solar facility, as well as Enhance Energy's carbon sequestration project near Clive. Sustainable agriculture practices were demonstrated at Doef's Greenhouses and ambassadors also visited a first-in-Canada milk concentration facility operated by Dairy Innovation West in South Aspelund Industrial Park.
Shepherd said the visitors came away impressed. "The response was really positive."
The county also undertook the creation of a Drought Management Plan in response to the recent dry cycles that has highlighted the need to conserve and manage water.
"I'm hoping the dry conditions back away a bit," she said. "But if they don't, that's going to be a pretty big-sized concern."
County staff and council also take pride in recognition they received for municipal efficiency and long-running support for school counselling programs.
Earlier in the year, the county received the Minister's Award for Excellence in Red Tape Reduction. The county picked up the award for the efficient way it has handled its Municipal Development Plan reviews. The plans, which are the overarching plans guiding development, must be reviewed every 10 years.
Lacombe County found it more useful to do more focused annual reviews rather than a massive overhaul every decade and it has worked out very well.
"It's a lot smoother process than it used to be," she said, adding the Alberta Professional Planners Institute also recognized the county for that initiative. "It certainly was something we were pretty proud of."
Other recognition came from the Alberta School Board, which gave the county a Friends of Education Award for Zone 4. Wolf Creek Public Schools nominated the county for its support for social workers.
Each year, the county provides $150,000 to fund social workers within Wolf Creek School Division, ensuring students have access to critical mental health and emotional support.
