Local economic development corp aiming to help region thrive
By: Derek Howard, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Source: MidlandToday.ca, Oct 30, 2024
The transformation of the Economic Development Corporation of North Simcoe from its near-demise to a strengthened economic force for the area will be tested during upcoming council budget discussions, but not critically.“Economic development supports the retention and growth for businesses,” said EDCNS director Cathryn Love in a conversation with MidlandToday. “Our goals are job creation, skills development, business growth and community revitalization.” Midland, Penetanguishene, and the townships of Tay and Tiny are served by the EDCNS, and in previous years they had largely funded the organization.
However, two factors caused uncertainty to fund the organization by local councils in 2023: the perception of an inflated reserve within the EDCNS, as well as an inability to deliver key performance indicators (KPI) on what they’d accomplished while other organizations could clearly provide that information. Given the difficulty in obtaining transparency by local councils as far back as 2021, funding was reduced greatly in 2023 and the organization was told to produce results. Several positions changed within the not-for-profit organization, and an ‘innovation hub’ was presented as the biggest offering which could be provided with financial restrictions. “Our three key industries for the innovation hub are manufacturing, agriculture and construction,” said Love, “ so we’re going to be reporting on the export growth for those industries.”
Acting as a collaborative space to bring together major roles from those sectors, Love stated that no physical space had been obtained for the hub although 2025 would be a likely year for a location to be found. “I think our business support services have aligned with those KPIs in the past,” Love noted. “We played a part in that certainly with our manufacturing round tables that we provided, promotional videos, marketing activities – representation for North Simcoe within the county regionally. “I don’t think maybe it’s been as transparent or tracked as diligently as it could be, and that’s certainly something we’ll be doing going forward,” she added.
Love also shared that instead of relying on the commitment of municipal funding as the primary source over time, the organization would be expanding to municipal, provincial, federal, private sponsorship, and internal revenue to build “a sustainable model for EDCNS and the innovation hub.”
Asked if there were any gaps for the EDCNS to tackle, Love admitted that youth engagement hadn’t been as strong as she had hoped. Whether introducing the public to the Makerspace section of the Midland Public Library, partnering with local industry tours, or providing information placements in trade at higher education institutions, Love stated that those elements would also be incorporated into the innovation hub.
“When you talk to youth about job training, exploring job opportunities or entrepreneurship, at a certain age of 8 to 10 years they’re starting to think about what interests them and what problems they want to solve. So we want to start having those conversations.”
MidlandToday reached out to the four North Simcoe council representatives who sit on the EDCNS board of directors for their impressions of the organization’s recent efforts, goals and achievements, but only Mayor Dave Evans of Tiny Township responded. In his opinion, Evans said that the innovation hub had proven the EDCNS had “dedication to a more strategic and impactful path, instilling confidence in their viability and direction”, driven positively by the roles of the board of directors and Love. “The Innovation Hub alone justifies the investment, showing the positive impact EDCNS brings to North Simcoe,” wrote Evans. “Given its success, councils are likely to support EDCNS even further to sustain and expand its benefits.”
He added that he’d hoped to see continued investment in the hub’s growth, focusing on expanding programs and setting goals that would solidify its role as a key economic asset to the community. Love remarked that the cooperation of the four municipalities was a core strength that not many North Simcoe organizations held. “There’s obviously going to be things that people disagree on, but at the end of the day they’re still showing up and having those discussions,” said Love. “EDCNS is a great representation of how all four municipalities are coming together to make this region stronger, and that’s unique; it’s something I haven’t seen anywhere else.”
Information on the innovation hub can be found on the Economic Development Corporation of North Simcoe website.
Green and white allows safe walking at new Lafontaine crosswalk
By: Derek Howard, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Source: MidlandToday.ca, Oct 31, 2024
Roads are safer in Lafontaine as a new crosswalk was installed for pedestrian safety and community heritage.Public works director Tim Leitch announced the installation at the recent meeting of Tiny Township council, noting that it marked the fourth crosswalk in the municipality. “The school approached us a couple of years ago and were looking for a safer way for people to get across the street (Lafontaine Road West), Concession 16 – which is a county road,” said Leitch.
As the road is also County Road 26 and maintained by the county, Leitch said that coordination needed to be made with the county for the installation. “It also services the school (École élémentaire catholique Sainte-Croix), they’ve got some local businesses there, plus we also have the retirement home that’s in that area. It’s a busy little area.” Leitch stated that crossing signal lights had been considered for the crosswalk, but county standards required closer scrutiny. “We did a people count on that location on the busiest weekend in the summertime, just so we could see what the numbers would be,” said Leitch. “Unfortunately, it didn’t get to that level.”
Notably, Leitch brought attention to the crosswalk’s appearance and its connection to Lafontaine. “(As well as signage), it’s also got the unique colours with the white and the green, which are the Franco-Ontarian colours, which is reflective of the community that this was put in,” Leitch stated. Coun. Kelly Helowka expressed gratitude during the meeting on behalf of himself and the positive feedback he had received from residents. “I know there’s a few cities and towns in North America that have adopted those types of crosswalks. Some of them are red and white, some are green and white as you said, and the people have been very receptive to those,” said Helowka.
Leitch said that although the cost had “gone a little bit above and beyond what would typically be in” a budgeted amount, that his staff had been pleased with the end result, and wanted to bring awareness to the community who may be driving through the community safety zone. “We’re very happy to have this put into place, and just want the public to be aware that when you’re driving through Lafontaine, make sure you watch out for people and also the users of it,” said Leitch. “The key is that we funnel our pedestrian traffic through one central area, which will make it a lot easier for our travelling public. “It’s another little safety project we’ve implemented in the township,” he added.
Archives of council meetings are available to view on the township’s YouTube channel.