Central Alberta Leaders Align Around Investment Attraction and a Stronger Regional Voice
Mayors and Reeves confirm investment promotion and advocacy as priorities as CAEP moves forward with its three-year business plan and Team Central Alberta
INNISFAIL, AB – September 3, 2026 – Mayors and Reeves from across Central Alberta met in Innisfail today to help define the region’s economic development priorities and the role the Central Alberta Economic Partnership (CAEP) should play in advancing them.
Hosted by CAEP, the meeting brought together municipal leaders from across a region representing Alberta’s third-largest regional economy.
The message from the room was clear: Central Alberta benefits when its municipalities work together on the economic development opportunities that are bigger than any one community. Municipal leaders identified two areas where CAEP can provide particular regional value:
Promoting Central Alberta to prospective investors in Canadian and international markets; and
Advocating with governments and other decision-makers for regional projects, infrastructure and policies that strengthen Central Alberta’s competitiveness.
Those priorities closely align with CAEP’s new three-year business plan, which is focused on Empowering Investment Attraction in Central Alberta.
Over the next three years, CAEP will concentrate its resources on building a stronger regional investment proposition, improving investor readiness across member communities, expanding government relations and advocacy, and connecting municipalities with industry, post-secondary institutions, investment organizations and other economic development partners.
A key vehicle for that work is Team Central Alberta, CAEP’s industry partnership and regional investment marketing brand.
Team Central Alberta brings municipalities, businesses, educational institutions and regional organizations together under a common banner to take Central Alberta’s investment opportunities to market.
Rather than asking individual communities to compete for attention on their own, Team Central Alberta provides investors with a regional story backed by individual community opportunities.
That story includes some of Central Alberta’s strongest and fastest-emerging economic sectors, including transportation and logistics, agriculture, agtech and agri-food, conventional and alternative energy, carbon capture and storage, advanced manufacturing, and emerging technologies.
CAEP’s three-year plan will support that regional approach through a land development and investment attraction strategy, community and regional investor readiness profiles, investment-focused data and marketing materials, strategic relationship building, and a stronger government relations program.
The objective is straightforward: make it easier for investors to understand Central Alberta, identify opportunities and connect with the right community, business or regional partner.
“It was clear around the table today that our municipalities see value in having a strong regional voice,” said Mayor Barry Kletke of the Town of Trochu, CAEP Vice-Chair. “Whether you are Red Deer, Sundre, Trochu or one of the many communities in between, we benefit when Central Alberta is competing successfully for investment. CAEP gives us a way to take that bigger regional story to market while ensuring individual communities can benefit from the opportunities it generates.”
Participants also discussed the evolving economic development landscape in Central Alberta, including the emergence of organizations such as Red Deer DRIVE.
The discussion reinforced the importance of organizations having clear and complementary roles. For CAEP, municipal leaders emphasized that its strength is its ability to work across municipal boundaries, represent the broader Central Alberta economy and bring a collective regional perspective to investors and governments.
CAEP Executive Director Paul Salvatore said the discussion provides important confirmation as the organization begins implementing its new business plan.
“Today’s conversation was valuable because our Mayors and Reeves were very clear about where CAEP can make the greatest difference,” said Salvatore. “They want us promoting Central Alberta, helping our communities become investment-ready and advocating for the projects and infrastructure that will move this regional economy forward. Those priorities are at the centre of our three-year business plan.”
Salvatore said the next phase will be focused on execution and measurable results.
“Team Central Alberta gives us the platform to bring municipalities and industry together and take a much stronger value proposition to investors. Our job now is to turn that regional collaboration into investor leads, stronger government relationships and projects that create opportunities throughout Central Alberta.”
CAEP represents municipalities and regional partners working collaboratively to strengthen Central Alberta’s competitive position and create opportunities for investment and economic growth.
Media Contact:
Paul Salvatore, Executive Director
Central Alberta Economic Partnership 403-334-4922
