2015 Alberta municipal censuses

2015 Alberta municipal censuses
← 2014 April 1 – June 30, 2015 2016 →
Distribution of Alberta's 269 urban municipalities

Alberta has provincial legislation allowing its municipalities to conduct municipal censuses between April 1 and June 30 inclusive.[1][2] Municipalities choose to conduct their own censuses for multiple reasons such as to better inform municipal service planning and provision, to capitalize on per capita based grant funding from higher levels of government, or to simply update their populations since the last federal census.[3]

Alberta had 357 municipalities between April 1 and June 30, 2015, which marked the closure of the 2015 legislated municipal census period. This was reduced to 356 on July 1, 2015 when the former Village of Minburn dissolved to become a hamlet under the jurisdiction of the County of Minburn No. 27. At least 52 of these municipalities (14.6%) conducted a municipal census in 2015. Alberta Municipal Affairs recognized those conducted by 50 of these municipalities.[4] By municipal status, it recognized those conducted by 12 of Alberta's 18 cities, 20 of 108 towns, 5 of 92 villages, 3 of 5 specialized municipalities, 2 of 64 municipal districts, and all 8 Metis settlements.[4][a] In addition to those recognized by Municipal Affairs, censuses were conducted by the villages of Kitscoty and Warburg.[5][6]

Aerial view of Red Deer
Red Deer's 2015 municipal census confirmed its population exceeded 100,000.

Some municipalities achieved population milestones as a result of their 2015 censuses. Red Deer became the third city in Alberta to exceed 100,000 residents, while Grande Prairie not only surpassed 60,000 people, but also overtook both St. Albert and Medicine Hat to become Alberta's fifth-largest city. Spruce Grove grew beyond the 30,000 mark, while both the Town of Blackfalds and the County of Vermilion River eclipsed 8,000. The Town of Westlock's population resurfaced above 5,000 after first doing so in 2006 but dropping back below in 2008. The Village of Thorsby surpassed 1,000, making it eligible to apply for town status.

  1. ^ "Municipal Government Act: Revised Statutes of Alberta 2000 Chapter M-26 (Office Consolidation)". Alberta Queen's Printer. November 24, 2010. Retrieved June 24, 2013.
  2. ^ "Municipal Government Act: Determination of Population Regulation, Alberta Regulation 63/2001 (Office Consolidation)" (PDF). Alberta Queen's Printer. 2013. p. 3. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 26, 2013. Retrieved December 30, 2013.
  3. ^ Municipal Census Manual: Requirements and Guidelines for Conducting a Municipal Census (PDF). Alberta Municipal Affairs. January 2013. p. 7. ISBN 978-1-4601-0359-3. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 1, 2013. Retrieved June 24, 2013.
  4. ^ a b c 2015 Municipal Affairs Population List (PDF). Alberta Municipal Affairs. ISBN 978-1-4601-2630-1. Retrieved February 17, 2016.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference Kitscoty was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference warburg was invoked but never defined (see the help page).


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