Calgary, February 4, 2026 – A new survey from the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) shows that 74% of Calgary small businesses are satisfied with the City of Calgary’s communication around the Bearspaw South Feeder Main (BSFM) Improvements Project, but would like to see targeted business supports to offset the impact of construction.
On February 2, 2026, CFIB surveyed its Calgary members to assess the impacts of the January feeder main break and to understand business expectations as the BSFM Improvements Project advances. Early results show that 4% of Calgary members (80 businesses) lost customers following the water main break, and 6% (120 businesses) expect to be affected during replacement construction period in 2026.
“Businesses aren’t asking for construction to stop—they understand the value of this project and the importance of completing it efficiently,” said Keyli Loeppky, CFIB’s Director of Alberta and Interprovincial Affairs. “What they need are short‑term, targeted measures that reflect the exceptional nature of this disruption and help them stay afloat.”
Construction impacts can be significant. Nationally, small businesses report an average 40% decline in sales during construction projects. Common challenges include traffic congestion, dust and noise (58%), difficulty for customers and staff to access the business or find parking (49%), stress (23%), and inadequate notice (33%).
One Calgary business owner said “the City of Calgary has done a better job of communicating the water main issue this time around, but because of the lack of communication and planning around infrastructure repairs, maintenance, and upgrades for many years, I believe that most Calgarians are skeptical that we have heard the whole story and that the proper repairs will take place.”
Based on survey responses, Calgary small businesses identified several tools the City should consider to help mitigate impacts during the BSFM project:
- 56% support property tax assistance for directly affected businesses (e.g., a 2026 rebate)
- 53% want assurance that business property taxes will not rise in response to infrastructure repair costs
- 44% support direct financial assistance (e.g., a one‑time grant)
- 26% support increased Business Improvement Area (BIA) funding to drive community engagement and customer traffic
- 24% support a shop‑local campaign promoting impacted business areas
“We appreciate the City’s proactive approach so far in 2026 and look forward to continued collaboration to support small businesses during this major infrastructure upgrade,” added Loeppky. “As the City finalizes its Business Friendly Construction Policy, we hope to see the lessons learned applied quickly to major projects like this feeder main improvement to drive better outcomes for impacted businesses.”
For media enquiries or interviews, please contact:
Keyli Loeppky, CFIB
587-580-9140
keyli.loeppky@cfib.ca
About CFIB
The Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) is Canada’s largest association of small and medium-sized businesses with 100,000 members (10,000 in Alberta) across every industry and region. CFIB is dedicated to increasing business owners’ chances of success by driving policy change at all levels of government, providing expert advice and tools, and negotiating exclusive savings. Learn more at cfib.ca.
Methodology
The data is based on preliminary results from CFIB's Calgary Bearspaw Feeder Main Project survey, conducted online from February 2 to 3, 2026, among 72 Calgary small business owners who are members of the CFIB.
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