Updates from City Council’s 2025 Organizational Meeting

After a busy few weeks with the 2025 Municipal Election, Swearing-In Ceremony and the start of orientation, this Lethbridge City Council has now made its first decisions together.

At its annual Organizational Meeting on Monday, Lethbridge City Council approved:

• The 2026 Council and Standing Policy Committee calendar
• The Deputy Mayor and Acting Mayor schedule (2025-2029)
• The Council appointments to Boards, Commissions and Committees (BCCs)
• The Administrative appointments to its BCCs

Meeting calendar for 2026

Adoption and publication of the 2026 Council and SPC Calendar assists with planning and scheduling. It also ensures an efficient and transparent notification process for the public, while meeting legislated requirements. With approval and posting on the website of the 2026 Council and SPC Meeting Calendar, the public will have notice of regularly scheduled meetings for the entire year.

Council and SPC agendas will continue to be publicly available one week in advance. Individual SPC meeting agendas list information for extensive public participation opportunities.

Public participation opportunities

On the City’s website, residents can now find a simplified process of how to appear at an SPC meeting. The page has information on the public opportunities to participate in the governance and decision-making of the City of Lethbridge. 

Acting and Deputy Mayor Rotation 

The rotation for the Deputy and Acting Mayor has been determined. The schedule again has the Councillor with the most votes become the first Acting Mayor, the Councillor with the next most votes as the second Acting Mayor, and so on.  

As such, Councillor Belinda Crowson is now the current Acting Mayor and Councillor Jenn Schmidt-Rempel is the current Deputy Mayor. The primary responsibilities of the Acting Mayor and Deputy Mayor are to act as the Mayor’s representative when the Mayor is unavailable, or, as requested by the Mayor to support Mayoral functions. Additionally, both positions with the Mayor serve as the Priorities and Agenda Review Committee, which has several responsibilities including the setting of Council and SPC agendas.  

Administration Committee appointments 

The following members of Administration have been appointed for a one-year term, effective January 1, 2026:  

• Travis Grindle, Recreation Services Manager – Recreation and Culture, to the Combative Sports Commission
• Mark Svenson, Environmental Manager - Waste Utility and Environment, to the Oldman Watershed Council 

The appointment of members of Administration to committees provides subject matter expertise and promotes collaboration and collective decision-making with Council and public members.

For Public Inquiries:  

Call or chat 311 | Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.