As harvest season begins, Experience Alberta is inviting visitors to Strathcona County on Sept. 6 for a Farmstand Tour. The self-guided trip, described by organizer Jacquie Fenske as "a market on wheels," invites you to travel from stand to stand from 10am to 3pm, discovering locally grown, baked, raised, and handmade goods, meeting the makers behind them along the way.
Bar OA was unable to participate in Alberta Open Farm Days in August because the stormy summer was so hard on the flowers, owner Bryanna Kumpula-Yung told Taproot. But she's ready to receive visitors this weekend; this is the kind of experience that the farm offers to create a sustainable, diversified business on less than an acre. "How do I get high value? I bring people. I give them an experience … so it's not just a commodity crop where I cut and sell wholesale or cut and sell a bouquet," she said. (Stay tuned for more on agritourism from Kumpula-Yung and Eiblis Doherty of Strathcona County's tourism department in a future Taproot story.)
Shelly Nichol, the executive director of the St. Albert and District Chamber of Commerce, urged residents to buy local and Canadian products as federal countermeasures of 15% to 50% on about $27.6 billion worth of U.S. goods are set to take effect on Sept. 8. The measures match earlier U.S. tariffs on Canadian exports such as honey, tools, and toilet paper. Morinville Home Hardware manager Olivia Chevalier said the price of screws has already risen by about 20 cents.
More than 12,500 people attended a virtual town hall where Premier Danielle Smith and cabinet ministers fielded questions about AI data centres, including Meta's proposed $13-billion facility and $4.6-billion natural gas plant in Sturgeon County. Attendees raised concerns about water use, safety setback distances from homes, and a Pembina Institute report estimating the Sturgeon County project could add up to $462 a year to household power bills, though Smith said data centres will have to bring their own power and pay transmission fees to offset costs for other consumers. The opposition NDP called for a pause on new data centre approvals until a framework addressing power costs and water use is in place.
Municipalities
St. Albert city council returned from its summer break for a regular meeting on Sept. 1 to review a corporate quarterly report showing a forecast surplus of $190,000 from one-time grants and RCMP contract savings. Council was also set to give first reading to fee changes in various bylaws, including those governing urban hens and beekeeping. Coun. Sheena Hughes plans to propose funding banners for Veterans Way.
Spruce Grove city council is preparing to sponsor a resolution asking Alberta Municipalities to push the province for clear, consistent rules on personal mobility devices such as e-scooters and e-bikes, citing safety and enforcement gaps in the Traffic Safety Act. Mayor Jeff Acker said the resolution, headed to the association's September convention in Edmonton, responds to resident concerns about safety and inconsistent bylaw enforcement.
The City of St. Albert has scheduled a Sept. 15 public hearing on Bylaw 21/2026, a Housing Accelerator Fund land use amendment that would shrink minimum lot widths in several low-density neighbourhoods, cap secondary suites on smaller lots, and allow taller buildings and higher density along St. Albert Trail. The changes would also create a new mixed-use transit-oriented district near future rapid transit stations, permitting buildings up to 50 metres tall.
Sturgeon County council directed staff to develop policy options on intermunicipal governance and efficiency, examining how the six municipalities in the Sturgeon region share services, coordinate planning, and might approach restructuring scenarios such as dissolution or amalgamation.
Sturgeon County council approved a rezoning that permits more uses at Prairie Gardens and allows up to 900 vehicle trips a day during special events once intersection safety upgrades are complete. Until a new development permit is issued, the farm remains capped at 50 trips daily and 199 during special events.
Parkland County Fire Services has opened applications through Sept. 28 for paid-on-call firefighters at its Acheson, Parkland Village, Wabamun, and Tomahawk stations, offering training and pay to recruits regardless of experience. The call follows the county's inaugural Battle for the Bell competition Aug. 11, where 28 firefighters on seven teams tackled skills-based challenges and collected 135 boxes of cereal for the Parkland Food Bank.
The Town of Stony Plain reopened Meridian Reservoir Park in the Meridian Heights neighbourhood on Aug. 27 with a ribbon-cutting, replacing relocated multisport courts with a new playground, basketball court, and grassy area. It also completed reconstruction of a section of 43 Street, reopening the roadway near École Meridian Heights School after a summer-long closure.
The City of Leduc celebrated the naming of John Jackie Park on Aug. 29. Jackie served as a member of Leduc city council from 1989 to 1995 and as mayor from 1995 to 1998. He also volunteered with the Friends of the Alexandra Pool for more than 20 years.
The City of Leduc's second round of annexation open houses in June presented results of its Growth Management Study, which trimmed the proposed annexation area by about 14.5% to 2,209 hectares after excluding lower-quality farmland to the south. City planning director Teaka Broughm said Leduc needs the additional land to support 50 years of growth. Coun. Jill Spinks said annexed land could remain in agricultural use for another 15 to 20 years before development begins.
Sturgeon County warned that record rainfall has left gravel roads soft and prone to ruts ahead of harvest season, asking drivers to slow down and share the road with school buses and farm equipment as crews work to keep up with maintenance.
Bruderheim unveiled a veterans-themed crosswalk during its Aug. 30 Alberta Day celebration. Rain had delayed the project several times after it was first scheduled earlier this year. The crosswalk, which is near the town office and a seniors residence, adds a downtown tribute alongside the existing veterans garden, said Sherry Cote, the town's director of development and legislative services.
Plan your Life Sciences Week
The full calendar for Life Sciences Week is coming together, with events taking place in Edmonton and Calgary from Sept. 21 to 25. Explore the official kickoff, life sciences campus tours, the launch of the University of Alberta's Regenerative Medicine Hub, an industry innovation speed-networking lunch, and conversations about medtech, diabetes, health-system collaboration, investment, and more. Start building your schedule today.
Utility work behind St. Albert Place will keep its southern entrance, some parking stalls, and part of the provincial courthouse lot closed until Oct. 12, later than planned because of record rainfall.
St. Albert Public Schools installed six new and one used modular classrooms at Wild Rose Elementary this summer, replacing units that dated to 1977. The district has about 117 relocatable classrooms across its schools; secretary-treasurer Michael Brenneis said they remain the fastest way to add space when the province doesn't fund a new school.
St. Albert Chamber Music Society announced its 18th season, opening Oct. 4 with the Gryphon Trio and continuing through April with performances by cellist Dongkyun An, the Valkyrie String Quartet, Duo Bellanota, and the newly formed Magpie Percussion.
Sherwood Park Archery Club held a free open house on Aug. 29 showcasing its junior program, ladies' night, league night, and new archery progression program to newcomers. Club representative Quinn Brodie said the group, active since the early 1980s, provides equipment for members who don't have their own gear.
Gallery@501 presents Family Traditions, a new exhibition running Sept. 3 to Oct. 24 that features Inuit stencil printmaker Roberta Memogana and third-generation watercolour artist Emily Mosley-Delorme exploring family history through their art. A free reception with an artist talk and printmaking demonstration runs Sept. 17 from 6pm to 8pm as part of Culture Days.
St. Albert will add four names to its Community Recognition Garden monument on Sept. 3, honouring the late Donald McDonald for decades of volunteer firefighting and community service; Jorge and Jeannette Vargas for founding the St. Albert Latin Cultural Association; and Charlene Zoltenko, a Desjardins Insurance agent since 1993 and past chamber chair, for her contributions to local business.
Leduc West History Park welcomed crowds for Leduc County Day on Aug. 22, showcasing pioneer-era buildings such as the Mechanical Music Museum and blacksmith shop alongside vintage car and tractor collections, local performers, and an art competition, won by photographer Cindy Danyluk-Boisvert.
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