An economic development report has confirmed yet again that Canmore’s high cost of housing is a barrier for the community’s future prosperity.
Canmore Business and Tourism presented its economic development strategic plan along with a sector analysis of the economy and it sparked debate around what specific areas the organization should focus on developing.
CBT President Andrew Nickerson presented the findings to council along with Justin Barer and George Parker with ROLLO and Associates, the consulting firm hired for the process.
Parker said the biggest challenge for business sector growth and economic development is the high cost of housing in Canmore.
“It is a huge damper on the potential growth of the economy in both the short and long term,” he said.
Although housing is a critical challenge, Nickerson said CBT’s work on the sector analyses would drive future work for economic development. The specific sectors identified for the report were health and wellness, food and beverage manufacturing, education and the cultural sector. That prompted concern from Mayor John Borrowmn, who questioned putting time and money into the arts and culture as an economic sector for development.
“I really struggle with the notion of trying to increase the cultural sector,” he said. “As much as I agree with the comment in the report that artisans in Canmore should be highly celebrated, nationally employees in that sector have a low income.
“Canmore is one of the most difficult places, in my opinion, to live in the country if you have a low income.”
While the report identified the high cost of living as an economic barrier, CBT does not actually do any specific work to address the issue. Borrowman asked how the organization plans to be involved in finding solutions. Specifically, the mayor said the business community as a whole needs to be at the table as part of the solution.
“We would like to get the businesses to understand their role within this and the municipality’s role,” Nickerson responded. “Businesses themselves would take on that responsibility if there was a business case and housing affordable enough to provide.”
Council also voted at the meeting to approve $157,000 of cost-reimbursable services CBT would provide the municipality in 2016 as detailed in the strategic plan.
Canmore Business and Tourism holds the contract for providing economic development services and those are considered payable in two categories: a lump sum of 50 per cent of the business registry fees and cost-reimbursable services up to the remaining business registry fees. The total budget for 2016 is expected to be $314,000.
The contract relationship between CBT and the municipality was determined through a memorandum of agreement approved earlier this year and requires the business plan be presented and approved by council for the cost-reimbursable services.
“There are two core parts to traditional and conventional economic development, those being business retention and expansion and business investment and attraction,” Nickerson said.
He said much of that work comes down to building relationships to understand what supports businesses need to grow and what would attract new ones to the valley.
The memorandum of agreement also tasked CBT with undertaking the baseline economic sector survey and two detailed sector analyses.
They identified a three areas for businesses to be categorized into – those that provide a service to customers, those that provide services to other businesses and those that do both.
“Tourism is not listed,” said Barer. “That is because tourism is not a sector, it is an economic force that drives Canmore.”
The complex analysis used by the consultants also divided industries using a location quotient – in other words what Canmore does specifically well when compared to the rest of Alberta.
Tourism-related sectors like heath and wellness and restaurants were identified as having a high location quotient, but so were high skilled sectors like education, creative, cultural and multimedia, finance and real estate.
Barer said sectors with a high location quotient and large revenues are a sweet zone for growth and specialisation. The ones chosen for a sector analysis were food and beverage manufacturing and health and wellness. The analysis also looked at education and the cultural sector for potential growth.
“Canmore has a fantastic environment, excellent mountain culture and ever since the Olympics the connection with fitness has made it a destination for health and wellness,” Parker said.
Nickerson said a steering committee has started to develop a health and wellness event for next October and the industry is working on what that festival will look like.
CBT’s work on events represents the other half of its economic development strategic plan as a lump sum payment and the organization focuses on events in the shoulder season as a key target period.
Council was supportive of the plan and the work CBT does on economic development.
“I am very supportive of CBT’s work to date and I feel we have to keep going in this direction,” said Councillor Sean Krausert. “I think we are now catching the attention of investors that see Canmore as a resilient place to do business. It is an economy that is the last affected by a downturn and first to recover.”
