Mayor Bill Powalinsky spoke to business and community leaders at the annual State of the City address hosted by the Prince Albert & District Chamber of Commerce on Tuesday. (Image Credit: Susan McNeil/paNOW Staff)

By Susan McNeil

State of the City

Mayor reiterates pivot and hub city themes as key in annual address  

Feb 3, 2026 | 3:52 PM

Prince Albert Mayor Bill Powalinsky re-iterated his message of pivoting the city from a gateway community to a hub city in the annual State of the City address hosted by the Chamber of Commerce.  

Powalinsky said while the city has challenges, it also has opportunities.  

“We’ve all heard that PA is the gateway city, north for south. We’re changing that paradigm to that of the hub city,” he said to a packed room at the Ches Leach lounge on February 3.  

Prince Albert is a hub for education with six post-secondary institutions operating within its limits, it will be a hub for health once the hospital expands its operations and it will be a hub for trade, commerce and transportation as the North develops with new focus on mines and minerals.  

“We know that every day we’re hearing about a new line and a new find. Somebody’s expanding, somebody’s doing new research and we know that economic and regional economy is going to be a driver.”  

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Indigenous business development is also a huge factor as the next census, which will happen this spring, is projected to put Prince Albert’s population at over 50 per cent Indigenous and likely about 40,000 people or higher.

“We have 10 urban reserves and a tremendous amount of assets that are being planned for our city, and this is a very key driver,” Powalinsky said.  

The new Lake Country Co-op Leisure Centre has generated a lot of buzz and Powalinsky said the city and partners at the Woodland Cree are still actively working to get federal funding for the Convention and Cultural event centre that would be built nearby.  

“We know that we’re going to have an impact and our current state is – we’re getting good feedback, we’re getting good support. It’s very encouraging and I’m looking forward to the next step in the adventure.”  

A housing report completed last year showed that Prince Albert needed 1,300 new units in the next decade to maintain availability.  

Powalinsky pointed to multiple projects announced by the YWCA, a proposal for an 80-unit seniors housing complex and an offer to purchase all of the fully-developed lots in Crescent Acres, currently home to newer single-family homes.  

An Ontario company bought the defunct pulp mill at the edge of the city and will turn it into an industrial park.  

Powalinksy said the city faces challenges in terms of financing needed infrastructure like a new wastewater treatment facility.  

Phase one will cost about $80 million with some of that hopefully paid for in federal grants but the municipality knows that more will come on that front.  

“We are certain that that’s not the end of it. We can’t realistically say at this moment (until phase one is done), is it going to be another $100 million? Will it be $250 million? I’m pretty confident that based on discussions from senior administration, it’s going to be somewhere between there,” Powalinksy said.

Other expensive projects on the horizon include one or two new substations for Prince Albert Fire and a new station for city police.  

When it comes to borrowing the money to complete projects, the city has a current debt of about $100 million and a debt limit of $120 million.  

That puts Prince Albert at the second highest per capita debt load in the province but at the same time, the interest Prince Albert pays per capita is the highest in the province.  

When it comes to demographics, the city has a uniquely young population. Over 8,000 are under 15 and around 6,000 are 65.  

For businesses, that means a large future workforce and opportunities in retail and recreation while the province needs to focus on educational needs.   

Prince Albert, while having a population of about 38,000, serves a trading area that is closer to 200,000. 

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susan.mcneil@pattisonmedia.com