Lloydminster hits multi-year highs in land sales

Ducher said the city has been reviewing internal processes, policies and bylaws to streamline approvals and reduce barriers for investors as it works to position itself for those opportunities.

During council discussion, members pointed to pressures tied to labour shortages and housing availability as activity increases.

“They’re all sitting there. We need people. We need people. We need people,” Coun. David Lopez said, referring to feedback from local businesses.

“They’re buying houses and housing people from out of town in a five-bedroom house and things like that. So it’s always, we need the housing before we can get the people, but we need the people to get the housing.”

Ducher said demand for higher-density housing continues to outpace supply.

“I would say one in four requests for information regarding residential lots is medium density, and so we have a very limited existing plug-and-play inventory of what those exist,” she said.

Business feedback gathered through 150 direct visits also identified rising costs, workforce shortages and regulatory complexity linked to Lloydminster’s position in two provinces.

Mayor Gerald Aalbers said the city is working to highlight its advantages, including available land and transportation access.

“We do play to the strengths of having two railroads, the industrial water availability from the wastewater treatment plant,” he said.

“Those are abundance of land and land that’s zoned and ready for development. I think those are all things that we’ve been able to speak to businesses and have played to it, and we’ll continue to play to what we can.”

Tourism and event activity contributed to local economic activity in 2025, with hotel occupancy reaching 70 per cent – the highest level in several years – reflecting increased business and visitor travel.

But Ducherer said more work is needed to fully capture that impact.

“We’re scratching the surface right now,” she said.

An updated economic development strategy is expected to come forward to council in May.

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Kenneth.Cheung@pattisonmedia.com

by Kenneth Cheung

Lloydminster hits multi-year highs in land sales

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