When it comes to Alberta’s most innovative public infrastructure, the good stuff always gets built in the province’s two major cities. True or false?
True, one extremely limited sample suggests. Afterall, last year’s four winners of the inaugural Minister’s Infrastructure Awards were evenly divided between Edmonton and Calgary.
False, says Martin Long, Alberta’s minister of infrastructure. Nominations for the awards totalled just six last year, and this time he wants to make sure the reach is wider and deeper.
“Our commitment to world-class infrastructure spans our entire province,” Long told The Macleod Gazette in an emailed statement.
The government is proud of projects like the Alberta Surgical Initiative underway in Brooks, Olds and Innisfail, Long said, and of school projects completed last year in Grande Prairie, Wabasca-Desmarais, Fort Vermillion, Leduc, Blackfalds, Langdon and Coaldale.
“There is lots of work in rural Alberta worthy of celebration,” said Long, the member for West Yellowhead. “But we can only award those who are nominated.”
Nominations stay open until 12 noon on July 25 for innovation in what the government classifies as “vertical infrastructure.” Loosely speaking, that means roads and bridges are a hard no.
Learning, health and government facilities in Alberta are eligible for awards under four categories of innovation — design, construction, environmental and equality.
The awards will look at qualities like originality, economic, environmental and social impact, and the potential for reuse or adaptation in other projects.
Judges are also interested in cost savings, improved safety, increased efficiency and reduced environmental footprint, along with collaboration between public agencies, the private sector, academia and other stakeholders.
The awards celebrate projects that “spark innovation” to improve communities, drive economic growth and “shape a brighter future for our province,” says the government website page for the awards.
Eligible nominations include members in good standing of the Consulting Engineers of Alberta, the Consulting Architects of Alberta, the Alberta Construction Association or local construction associations. Alberta Infrastructure employees are eligible if they partnered with a qualifying organization.
The government encourages self-nominations and third-party nominations.
The awards will be presented Nov. 5 at the Infrastructure Partners Conference banquet in Edmonton. They’ll recognize public design or construction completed within the past two years.
Projects can be nominated in more than one innovation category but can only win in one. Past recipient projects aren’t eligible.
And for the record, projects in Edmonton or Calgary are eligible, just like they were last year.
A convention centre expansion and a university building in Calgary earned recognition in 2024. So did two Edmonton projects, a Government Centre upgrade of the iconic outdoor pool and fountain, and an emergency department redevelopment.
But in year two of the awards, maybe it’s time for engineers, architects and their partners involved in projects elsewhere to set the record straight, Long’s statement suggests.
Visit alberta.ca/ministers-infrastructure-awards for more information.
