Planning for growth in a natural resource boomtown: challenges for urban planners in Fort McMurray, Alberta

Abstract

Between 2000 and 2010, the population of the city of Fort McMurray, Alberta increased by 80%, mainly due to the expansion of oil extraction projects and subsidiary industries. Population growth of this magnitude has significant consequences for city planning. While Fort McMurray struggles to keep up with enormous numbers of in-migrants, the cost of living in the city has skyrocketed. Using interviews with city planners and field experience in the city, in this paper I examine the current challenges faced by urban planners in Fort McMurray against the backdrop of global economic decision-making, corporate influence, and commodity dynamics. While the recession of 2008 gave city planners some breathing room, they still struggle with gathering accurate census information and predicting population growth, providing affordable housing, and balancing short-range planning with their long-term goals. Attempts by city planners to address these challenges could provide a contemporary model for urban planning in rapidly growing, resource-dependent communities.

Keywords:

• urban planning
• natural resource
• boomtown
• Fort McMurray
• oil sands
• fly-in-fly-out

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Acknowledgments

I would like to thank the reviewers and Editor Richard Shearmur for their constructive comments that were invaluable for the construction of this manuscript. I would also like to thank colleagues who read versions of this manuscript at various times and provided important feedback: Scott M. Youngstedt, Ola Johannson, and Thomas L. Bell. Thanks to Andrew J. Miller of Saginaw Valley State University for his help with the Alberta map, and to the planners at the RMWB Planning and Development Department who gave me their time and shared their expertise.

Notes

1. “Regional Municipality” is a term used by municipal governments in Canada similar to the ways that counties are designated in the United States. There are, however, differences between the two in regards to the services offered and political control held. The local government jurisdiction is the Regional Municipality, an area formed in 1995 that encompasses 64,454 square kilometers. Fort McMurray (referred to as “the city”) is the largest settlement and urban service center in the Municipality. The Planning and Development office is a municipal-level agency.

2. At the time of writing, the exchange rate between the US dollar and the Canadian dollar was 1:1.02. Because the value of the two currencies is practically equal, amounts in this paper are given in Canadian dollars, but can be thought of as equivalent in US dollars.

3. `The 2008 global recession did result in slower population growth in Fort McMurray, only 1% growth between 2008 and 2010, instead of the 6.1% average annual growth between 2000 and 2010. However, growth is projected to increase because investments in oil sands projects have grown in 2010 and 2011 (Economic Development Department, 2011; Planning and Development Department, 2010).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Government of Canada and Saginaw Valley State University.