Private sector injects $4M to spur development
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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 01/12/2010 (5707 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
WITH a splashy kickoff on Tuesday, Winnipeg became the third city in the country to fund a major economic development initiative with private sector investment.
More than 100 Winnipeg companies have committed about $4 million over the next five years to Yes! Winnipeg, which will establish the city’s first proactive, private-sector-led initiative to grow the local economy.
The goal of the staff of nine people, working under Economic Development Winnipeg, is to put Winnipeg on the radar of site selector consultants across North America, follow up on tips from the community, and develop relationships with suppliers who might fill gaps in the local economy.
Bill Morrissey, the marketing expert who has championed the project, said, “The goal is to grow the private sector.”
The plan is to attack all four of the standard economic development targets: attract new businesses to the city, help existing ones expand, do what’s necessary to retain those considering a move and help entrepreneurs start new businesses.
The twist this time is that these efforts are not being led by a government agency, but by the private sector. (Governments have committed $2 million to the five-year project.)
This is not the first time this model has been used. In Halifax, more than $10 million in private sector investment has been attracted since the late ’90s. Calgary Economic Development also has a program, Action Calgary, that has raised money from the private sector.
The 115 investors in Yes! Winnipeg will have a chance to sit on the organization’s investor council.
Marina James, CEO of Economic Development Winnipeg said, “They have all invested as community building — that’s how we put it. When the water rises we all share in that.”
martin.cash@freepress.mb.ca