north west business peace river oct 2013
TRANSCRIPT
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7/29/2019 North West Business Peace River Oct 2013
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14 N O RT H WES TB U S I N ESS O C TO B ER 2013
Bursting With
Its the prettiest place on the planet, or so says Peace River Mayor Lorne Mann.
And as nice as that is, it just begins to describe what that town of nearly 7,000
has to offer potential businesses, residents and visitors.
Photos
courtesy
ofCityofPeace
River
sspotlight on... Peace RiveR
Goodness
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15N O R T H W E S T B U S I N E S S . C AOCTOBE R 2013
BY JOEI wARM
Photos
courtesyofCityofPeace
River
ight on...
Were hoping that this is our time,
i Mnn.
From all indications, it is. The pretty
little town is in a good way bursting
at the seams. With a growth rate of 10
per cent showing on the last census, and
wild expansion since then, Mann said
every sector is going great guns.
Agriculture is just going through the
roof. Commodity prices are incredible.
reoue be i e. the Hine ceek
areatheyre making noises on that iron
ore deposit theyre after that and thats
going to push things. The railway is just
going crazy, said Mann.
In fact, the railway may prove more
important than ever and may highlight
the one downside to the recent growth.
The reliance on railway can only go so far
n ue o he lk of poe on pipe-
lines connecting Northern Alberta and
British Columbia, maybe problematic, he
explin.
Ou pipeline i ful l n i pinh
poin n i oppin ou eonomi
development here in the north, Mannsaid. Be that as it may, you wouldnt
know that from the activity in and
around the town.
Shell has pulled a permit on a 1,500-
man camp, said Mann, who added that
everyone is holding their collective breath
waiting for an announcement, expected
in October, of more local activity from
shell.
shell h o ll hei envionmenl
approvals and theyre going as if its a go.
th oin o be he ippin poin. If i
oe, i oin o be bukle up n hn
on n if i oe no, hee i ill 31 ohe
players that are going.
Its just that kind of thing thats creating
he uneuen of exiemen in Pee
River. In addition to the inux of new
people and businesses, the community is
seeing the return of its youth and thats
a dynamic most northern communities
can only hope to see.
It used to be that those of us who went
away to university wouldnt come back,
but now were seeing lots of mortgage pay-
ing jobs so were seeing the young people
come back, said Mann. Young profes-
sionals of all kinds are making their way
home o Pee rive o ke vne of
all the things the community offers.
We have lots of new businesses starting
up, said Peace River & District Chamber
of commee genel Mne deneen
Everett. She sees growth in the chamber
as indicative of whats happening in the
community. With a membership already
200 strong, they are experiencing their
There is a lot o growth. Lots
o people are moving to Peace
River and they are starting their
businesses. Peace River has a
lot to oer. It is a beautiul place
to live and we do have lots o
amenities.~ Peace River & District Chamber of
Commerce General ManagerDeneen Everett
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16 N O RT H WES TB U S I N ESS O C TO B ER 2013
Peace RiveR
own growth and are often a rst point
of contact for new businesses. Were in-
volve in lo of pomoion fo he bui-
ness community, but we also do a lot of
advocacy. In the community were known
for hosting some pretty big events includ-
ing employer showcases, the job fair trade
shows and our big Davis Awards.
The awards recognize Small Business
Of The Year, Large Business Of The
Year, Community Involvement, Service
Excellence and Breakout New Business,
and this year are being held on Oct. 5.
Pee rive hllene, n expee
adjunct to growth, are similar to those
many other northern municipalities are
fin. Houin, he poviion of e-
que evie, infuue n, in e-
cent years, worker recruitment and reten-
tion are just part and parcel of the growth
poe.
We do have a bit of a housing shortage,
said Everett. When people are moving
here to Peace River it can be hard to nd
n pmen ih in Pee rive. thee
e hin vilble in he uounin
ommuniie bu ofen hee people mih
not have access to vehicles.
the lk of publi npoion n
hen beome bi of n iue he i,
however, the town has come up with a
workable solution after exploring the pos-
sibility of public transit an option that
Mann said a pilot project showed to be
unwieldy, and excessively costly to run.
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17N O R T H W E S T B U S I N E S S . C AOCTOBE R 2013
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Peace River is a scenic, urban centre in the heart of
Albertas northwest and provides a wide range of
services to a surrounding population of over 50,000.
To relocate to Peace River or to find out more
about doing business here, please contact the
Town of Peace River 780 624 2574 or
email [email protected]
A taxi pass program was initiated that
would allow those most affected by the
lk of publi ni o hve n len-
ive. Fo miniml o, enio, peon
with disabilities and those meeting the
towns means test can purchase passes
for a nominal fee which taxi companies
can then take to the town for remit-
tance of what would be a more normal
fare. Mann said he thinks its a win-win
but admits it doesnt include everyone.an in he menime, houin i ill
priority.
Townhouses, apartment build-
in n hoel e ll bein buil n
h houl help llevie he houin
crunch. In fact Mann has a fairly long
list of projects in development.
Weve got a number of properties
that are already well advanced in the
subdivision stage so that we look like
in the medium-end range we will be
ok. Everybody worries about planning
fo boom in he mile of boom
and weve let the market do its thing.
thee 180 uni ubiviion h h
i plnnin one. thee nohe one
with 100 units that has the planningone. a hi one h been one fo
a while the planning its a 100 and
then theres inll on the Upper Shaftes-
bury area
all o of inuil lo e poppin
up right on our border and a 15-unit in-
dustria l park in Peace River approved.
Several hotel projects, apartments and
a seniors facility are in the works. The
addition of a working boiler at the col-
lege to help target training where it
will be most useful, the construction of
eionl ll ene one of hee in
albe i Mnn n boel foegreenhouses that wil l help research well
ie emeiion, iionl pkin n
the addition of green spaces in the town
proper are all helping the town provide
what the people need. These last two
e lo onibuin o he evoluion of
the downtown.
We dont even like to say revitaliza-
tion because its (the downtown) almost
full. There are one and a half major
spaces and theres maybe two or three
that are vacant, said Mann. Eventhe towns infrastructure has been ad-
dressed. This year weve redone over
10 per cent of the road system including
the necessary subsurface.
Beautication, a new rec complex
and a bylaw that mandates commercial
We have lots o new businesses starting up, She sees growth in the
chamber as indicative o whats happening in the community. With
a membership already 200 strong, they are experiencing their own
growth and are oten a frst point o contact or new businesses.~ Peace River & DistrictChamber of Commerce General ManagerDeneen Everett
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18 N O RT H WES TB U S I N ESS O C TO B ER 2013
buildings must be at least two stories
high with residential on top round out
Mnn evelopmen li.
Everett notes that while she thinks
mayor and councillors are approach-
ble n uppoive bu hee e ome
things that even they can do little
bou.
We are a community that does have
a high turnover rate so there is a worker
shortage for sure, said Everett. It isnt
just gett ing the right people there, its
keepin hem, bu h i omehin he
chamber can, and does, help with.
Something people may not know
is that were very involved with the
advocacy side of things. When busi-
nesses are experiencing an issue they
n ome o u n I n peen i o
the board and we can work with them
to come up with a solution. She cites
the recent approval of the Rural Family
Medicine Policy by the Alberta Cham-bers of Commerce. Awareness of what is
neee o e he helhe ho-
age will now have a vehicle to propel it
all the way to the provincial ministers
ofce where, hopefully, constructive ac-
ion n ke ple.
the ein fo ll hi buine -
tivity is no less important. The terrain
i beuiful n inlue popul
ki einion ih in he ene of
things. We have the highest vertical
ouie he nionl pk in albe
Misery Mountain has an 88-seat quad
hi lif h h 67,000 plu vii o
the top this winter. It was a nice snow
year, said Mann.
rollin hill hol il fo hikin,
biking with snow-shoeing and cross-
country skiing in winter. Snowmobil-
ers will also nd a place to ride. And
he Pee rive offe oppouniie
for water sports of all kinds. Boating
is superb with the world jet boat races
almost annually there, said Mann.We have all the facilities and we
All sorts o industrial lots are popping up right on our border and
a 15-unit industrial park in Peace River approved. Several hotel
projects, apartments and a seniors acility are in the works.~ Peace River Mayor Lorne Mann
hve o enein ouelve o hee
lots for families to do. Were the ac-
counting center, were the judicia l cen-
tre, weve got police protection, were
he povinil ovenmen ene fo
the reg ion.culue lo h i ple in Pee
River and is alive and well in the town
eine culuville in 2011. a li-
brary, theatre and dance companies,
culin club, mueum, movie he-
e, n of oue he nnul PeeF-
est where several days of entertain-
ment can be enjoyed. Mann also noted
that his town is becoming preferred
place to play for evermore well-known
pefome.
I ll ih hee bu ll h beill nee feuin.
From Manns point of view, that can
happen with the right attitude. Main-
taining community engagement, posi-
tive and competent elected ofcials,
good governance, projecting that Peace
rive i open fo buine n h poli-
iin n muniipl ff e hee
for you and asking how they can help
people mee hei ol. th been
Mnn ovenmen mn.
aiue i he be hin poiiveattitude, he concludes.