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Claresholm Economic Development

The Town of Claresholm is a municipality of 3,820 residents, with a service area of seven thousand when including surrounding residents. Claresholm is located in Southwestern Alberta, approximately 130 kilometres south of Calgary and 90 kilometres northwest of Lethbridge. It is located on the CANAMEX corridor, a 6,000 kilometre trade corridor that is the cornerstone for efficient transportation of goods, services, people and information between Western Canada, the U.S. and Mexico. Claresholm is the largest municipality within the Municipal District of Willow Creek. Claresholm’s key industries are agriculture, construction, and healthcare. 

The Town of Claresholm is part of the Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot (RNIP), and since 2020, has connected 40 businesses with 92 newcomers. The RNIP program has resulted in an estimated 160 newcomers (workers and their families) settling in Claresholm. These new residents add to our workforce and make our Town more diverse, vibrant, and welcoming.

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DownloadCommunity Profile-Invest Alberta


On behalf of the Rural Development Network, the Sustainable Housing Initiative (SHI), through its Enabling Housing Choice (EHC) Project, has partnered with the Town of Claresholm to provide a Housing Assessment, Enabling Housing Choice Report, and an Affordable Housing Strategy.


The Economic Developemnt Committee has created a Strategic Plan for 2024 - 2026 to align with Council's Strategic Plan and guide them in supporting businesses and working to develop a vibrant and thriving economy. 

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DownloadEDC Strategic Plan 2024-2026


Every two weeks we send out an Economic Development Bulletin (ED Bulletin) with different items we feel may be helpful or interesting to the Claresholm business community. This includes award nomination opportunities, tools and resources for businesses, grant and loan opportunities, upcoming webinars, presentations and events, labour solutions, and we occasionally feature different organizations that provide benefits for businesses and entrepreneurs. Click below to see our past issues and subscribe to future emails. 

Town of Claresholm Email Campaign Archive

At the link above you can also view the past issues of our Claresholm Business Hub Job Postings, which is a collection of available job opportunities in Claresholm. This is sent out monthly both via email and through the Town of Claresholm Facebook page. If you are a business who is hiring and would like your posting included in the next issue of our Business Hub Job Postings, please fill out the Google Form linked below with your info by the 1st of a given month. Please note, you will need to resubmit this information for a given position by the first of each month so that we know you are still hiring and can include your listing in the next issue.

Add your employment opportunity to the Claresholm Business Hub Job Postings

The Claresholm Business Hub is a Facebook group where you can connect with other businesses in town, get information on events, partake in discussions about business opportunities, be the first to hear about upcoming incentives, and provide your input on training opportunities you might like to attend.

If you have yet to join, we would love to have you! Please click the link below to find the group and send a request to join.

Join Claresholm Business Hub video

ViewClaresholm Economic Development YouTube


Community Futures Alberta Southwest Business Improvement Loans provides interest free loans between $1,000 and $10,000 with terms between 1 - 3 years. Click below to learn more about eligible improvements and how to apply. 

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DownloadBusiness Improvement Loans


The Alberta Site Selector Tool is a self-serve digital platform that helps businesses and investors find and evaluate suitable properties to expand or locate their business in communities across Alberta.

This user-friendly tool provides advanced filtering options that combine available property listings with insights on local economic conditions, industry data and proximity to crucial infrastructure. Together, this information helps prospective investors and businesses make well-informed decisions about where to locate their business in Alberta.

The Tool automatically consolidates information on property listings from Spacelist.ca, a third-party site that allows users to post commercial real estate listings for free. Click below to access to tool and view available sites in Claresholm or find out more about how to add your available site to the Tool. 

Alberta Regional Dashboard & Site Selector Tool

Click below to learn more about the Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot (RNIP) or the Rural Entrepreneur Stream, how to apply, and the requirements.