Mayor Jyoti Gondek has asked multiple members of the federal government to fast-track developing what could be Alberta’s first inland rail port. 

On Aug. 11, Mayor Gondek told the media that she has tabled the Prairie Economic Gateway — a regionally approved industrial trade and manufacturing hub — to be considered a project of national interest under the Building Canada Act.

While the project is expected to create 30,000 jobs and bolster local investment opportunities, Gondek said that her letter to Prime Minister Mark Carney detailed the project’s potential for country-wide impacts. 

“This is the type of project that Bill C-5 was written for,” she said. 

“A project that strengthens Canada’s autonomy, turbocharges our economy, connects our internal markets and opens us up to new ones in the world.”

Introduced as part of Bill C-5, the One Canadian Economy Act was approved by the Governor General on June 26 and states that the federal government will expedite projects listed as being in the national interest.

Qualifying projects must seek to strengthen the access and production of energy and goods by way of reliable trade partners, according to the Government of Canada’s website.

Why the demand for federal funding?

During a meeting on July 7, Mayor Gondek said that she and PM Carney agreed on the need to better Canada’s east-west trade routes. However, she said that the pair have not connected on the matter since, and that her letter sprouted from the PM’s absence of confirmation. 

“Federal funding and support are essential to unlocking the project’s full potential,” read the letter. 

Construction of the inland rail port is currently estimated to be completed between 2027 and 2029. With federal assistance, Gondek said that this could mean seeing the suggested $7 billion in generated revenue faster. 

“This will take some time, but the earlier that we are able to get federal and provincial investments, the quicker we can move,” she said. 

Amid the economic uncertainty posed by tariffs on Canadian materials, Gondek said that 70 per cent of the country’s exports go to the U.S., and that the Prairie Economic Gateway should be streamlined to open up trade opportunities elsewhere. 

“That’s far too much reliance on one market,” said Gondek. 

“Gateway allows us to have more options, like increasing access to Mexico while opening corridors to Asia, Europe, and beyond.”

For the U.S. tariffs on aluminum, Gondek said that the material is made in Canada, but that popular items like 473 ml cans are manufactured in the U.S. Instead, she said that the project could allow for these to be manufactured here in Calgary. 

“For Calgary, this is about self-reliance, producing, manufacturing, and building our own future on purpose,” said Gondek. 

“For Canada, this is about securing our trade future.”

In addition to contacting the PM, Gondek sent a letter to the Build Canada Committee co-chairs responsible for choosing projects of national interest, Ministers Timothy Hodgson and Dominic LeBlanc, asking to meet and discuss the gateway.

“I remain optimistic that they will see that this is a nation-building project and that this project actually benefits every Canadian,” she said.