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City of Red Deer

Mayor Veer responds to BMO and RDC Donald School of Business leaving downtown core

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From the City of Red Deer

Mayor Tara Veer responds to downtown economic sustainability on behalf of City Council

Our community is facing unprecedented challenges, navigating the perfect storm of a global health crisis and an already unfavourable economic climate. BMO Bank of Montreal, a significant anchor in downtown Red Deer, has announced their intention to close their downtown and south Red Deer branches. The company will consolidate these local branches to a new branch in Bower Place. Following a briefing from Bank of Montreal officials, it is The City’s understanding that this is part of the planned change for the bank, and all other branches remain open in Red Deer.

This announcement closely follows the news that Red Deer College’s (RDC) Donald School of Business will move some student programming from the downtown campus to the main campus. RDC will continue to offer Continuing Education and English as a Second Language (ESL) courses at their downtown location. I spoke with the RDC Board Chair and we discussed the changing model of RDC and the future of RDC in the downtown. RDC reiterated their commitment to the downtown campus and the fact that ESL and Continuing Education programs will continue to bring students to our downtown.

We know that downtowns are the heart of any city and that they play a vital role as our communities’ business, administrative, and cultural centres. City Council has prioritized work on the strategic goal of ensuring a strong, dynamic local economy and a revitalized downtown and have identified this in our 2019-2022 Strategic Plan. As an example, earlier this year The City launched a new economic incentives program for the downtown and adopted other initiatives to strengthen our local economy. For additional information, please visit The City’s website at www.reddeer.ca and search downtown economic incentives and economic leader.

We remain committed to fostering a strong, diverse local economy, which includes a thriving downtown. We will continue to invest in and support businesses in the downtown and throughout our community, ultimately working to ensure long-term sustainability and viability and to support our community through these unprecedented times.Ct

After 15 years as a TV reporter with Global and CBC and as news director of RDTV in Red Deer, Duane set out on his own 2008 as a visual storyteller. During this period, he became fascinated with a burgeoning online world and how it could better serve local communities. This fascination led to Todayville, launched in 2016.

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City of Red Deer

Cindy Jefferies is Mayor. Tristin Brisbois, Cassandra Curtis, Jaelene Tweedle, and Adam Goodwin new Councillors – 2025 Red Deer General Election Results

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Showing official results for: Mayor of The City of Red Deer

# Candidate Name Votes Percentage
1 JEFFERIES, Cindy 6237 41%
2 SCOTT, Gareth 3483 23%
3 DOERKSEN, Victor 3143 20%
4 LEE, Lawrence 2215 14%
5 GALLAGHER, John 298 2%
Rejected Ballots 0 0%

Showing official results for: Councillor of The City of Red Deer

# Candidate Name Votes Percentage
1 BRISBOIS, Tristin 6703 7%
2 CURTIS, Cassandra 6422 7%
3 KRAHN, Chad 6249 7%
4 BARNSTABLE, Kraymer 6235 7%
5 WYNTJES, Dianne 6069 7%
6 TWEEDLE, Jaelene 5635 6%
7 GOODWIN, Adam 5290 6%
8 BURUMA, Bruce 5241 6%
9 GOULET-JONES, Calvin 5050 5%
10 HUIZING, Hans 4810 5%
11 BOUCHARD, Brandon 4528 5%
12 MACDONALD, Ashley Jason 3832 4%
13 BUCHANAN, Buck 3660 4%
14 MOHAMOUD, Zainab 3478 4%
15 SYPKES, Thomas 3459 4%
16 BECK, Gabriel 3370 4%
17 PARKS, Gail 2809 3%
18 YZERMAN, Calvin 2265 2%
19 WILE, Haley 1986 2%
20 COMÉTE, Christian 1843 2%
21 KLERKS, Kevin M. 1699 2%
22 ROBINSON, Don 1296 1%
23 MARTIN, Greg 656 1%
24 KLYWAK, Anthony 444 0%
Rejected Ballots 0 0%

Showing official results for: Trustee of the Red Deer Public School Division

# Candidate Name Votes Percentage
1 SOMMERS, Angela 3320 9%
2 BUCHANAN, Nicole 3180 9%
3 MACAULAY, Dianne 3119 8%
4 WATTERS, Jim 3038 8%
5 BAIRD SMITH, Emilee 2753 7%
6 DAVIES, Nathan 2749 7%
7 DALSTRA, Jason 2722 7%
8 CHRISTENSEN, Sheri 2701 7%
9 PARKER, Jenessa 2581 7%
10 PEACOCKE, Cathy 2573 7%
11 WILLIAMS, Danielle 2342 6%
12 ODISHAW, Shelley Lynn 2187 6%
13 SYMONS, Jessica 1881 5

Trustee of the Red Deer Catholic Separate School Division, Red Deer Area Ward

# Candidate Name Votes Percentage
1 ANDREW, Chris 2020 14%
2 MACDONALD, Brenda 1354 10%
3 REED, Martin (Marty) 1082 8%
4 LEYSON, Cynthia 1050 8%
5 HUBER, Emily 1037 7%
6 HOLLMAN, Murray 1036 7%
7 DONOVAN, Matthew 1021 7%
8 GROENEN, John 974 7%
9 STEEVES, Rod 921 7%
10 PASULA, Kim 911 7%
11 BECK, Gabriel 825 6%
12 HUNTER, Ashley 811 6%
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City of Red Deer

Plan Ahead: Voting May Take a Little Longer This Election Day

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News release from the City of Red Deer

Voters are encouraged to plan their vote and allow a little extra time at the polls this Election Day, Monday, October 20.

Because this year’s election uses Alberta’s new Permanent Elector Registry, voting may take slightly longer than in previous years. Municipalities are required to provide updated voter information back to the province after the election. As a result, many voters will be asked to complete an Elector Register Form (Form 13) at the voting station — even if they are already registered to vote. This ensures that voter information is accurate and up to date. Once the registry information has been updated, all forms are securely shredded.

Additionally, the Permanent Elector Registry is not shared with local school boards, so anyone voting for a School Board Trustee must also complete an Elector Register Form (Form 13).

We appreciate voters’ patience as our election teams work to ensure every eligible voter can cast their ballot accurately and securely. Once the voting process begins, most voters complete their vote in about 10 minutes.

To help avoid lineups, voters can visit Red Deer Elections website to check real-time wait times at each voting station and choose the location with the shortest line.

Anyone who arrives at a polling station and joins a line before 8 p.m. will be able to vote.

Thank you for your understanding and for taking the time to make your voice heard in Red Deer’s 2025 Municipal and School Board Election.

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