Business continues to boom in St. Albert.
This year, 3,795 businesses were licensed in the Botanical Arts City, according to a spokesperson. That’s 13 per cent more than were operating in the city in 2023 and 21 per cent more than the 2,986 licenses that were active in 2022.
St. Albert city staff received 530 new business license applications in 2024; 30 were withdrawn or represented duplicate accounts and 15 others are pending.
The 3,795 includes 2,800 businesses based in the city and nearly 1,000 based elsewhere but operating here.
The city contacts businesses that do not renew their licence each year to ask why.
“The City does not always receive a response or information on whether these businesses have chosen to relocate out of St. Albert, chosen to pause their operations, or end their operations,” spokesperson Marci Ng wrote in an email.
That said, the growth is consistent with the historical trend in St. Albert. Projections for future growth agree, especially once more industrial land comes on line in the Lakeview Business District.
As development on the Lakeview Business District continues, we will see further growth in active businesses operating in our community, all of which reflects a positive trajectory for business growth as we look ahead to 2025,” Ng said. “St. Albert has seen significant population growth over the last decade. New residential and commercial development has made it an even more attractive place to invest, to live, and to work.”
New census data shows the city grew 9.2 per cent between 2024 and 2018 to a population of 72,316, adding 3,082 new dwellings. There are 29,421 homes in St. Albert, 746 of them vacant.
“The City’s efforts to attract new investment, support startups, and support retention and growth of existing businesses (and) our message to entrepreneurs and investors is having an impact,” Ng said.
