Authors: Casey Vander Ploeg, Ben Brunnen, and Loleen Berdahl
Municipal infrastructure has become a serious issue when looking at western Canada’s six big cities. In 2003, these six cities reported a combined $543 million infrastructure deficit—the annual shortfalls of funds for needed infrastructure investments. These findings were reinforced by an in-depth analysis report released by the Canada West Foundation, entitled A Capital Question: Infrastructure in Western Canada’s Big Six in 2003.
With that in mind, No Time to be Timid sets out to identify various alternatives for financing municipal infrastructure and closing infrastructure deficits. The study explores the drivers of infrastructure problems and examines the ability of traditional financing options, innovative options, and systemic reform of municipal finance in hopes of addressing a sustainable solution.
No Time to be Timid is part of the Canada West Foundation’s Financing Urban Infrastructure Initiative, a component of the Western Cities Project. It was authored by Senior Policy Analyst, Casey Vander Ploeg of the Canada West Foundation, with assistance from Policy Analyst, Ben Brunnen, and Director of Research, Loleen Berdahl.