north west business peace river oct 2013

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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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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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.

north west business peace river oct 2013

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