Alberta's Local Authorities Board (LAB), a predecessor to the Municipal Government Board, granted the annexation in 1980 but excluded St. Albert, Sherwood Park and lands in Strathcona County to the east of Sherwood Park, thereby preventing any form of amalgamation.
[22] The lesser annexation granted by the LAB was subsequently tossed out by Alberta's provincial cabinet.
The amalgamation of the Town of Redcliff with the neighbouring City of Medicine Hat was investigated or considered to various degrees in 1962, 1968, 1972, 1979, 1980, and 1985.
[22] The City of Spruce Grove initiated a growth study in 2014 in which expansion via amalgamation was to be explored as an alternative to annexation.
[23] Potential partners for the amalgamation included the Town of Stony Plain, Parkland County or both.