Regional Planning for Growth Summit: Session 1 Notes

Building Prosperous Regions: What Works – Mark Partridge

Below are notes I took from the Regional Planning for Growth Summit being held in Regina. The first day has been very good so far. It has been helpful in the sense that there are things we are doing that are good and there have been new ideas presented that we could try.

Good ideas we are doing include: through the Mayors/Reeves Forum looking at enhancing our emergency services partnerships (in the early stages), procurement. Things we should consider doing include holding Council meetings with the RM of Kindersley.

I take notes in bullet format. If you need clarification email me and I can try to illuminate both of us.

·         Leverage assets inside region

·         Work collaboratively

·         People and businesses are important assets

·         Right incentives to retain people

·         Attract the right people and less on attracting ‘bribing’ outside firms

·         Be patient and build from within while leveraging local and regional assets

·         Compete Globally

·         Enhance critical mass through collaboration in existing and economic regions

·         Education and entrepreneurship are local forces promoting growth

·         Steps

·         Recognize rural-urban interdependencies

·         Share common interests and goals

·         Kindersley as commuting hub, consider as a symbiotic relationship with larger centres such as Saskatoon, North Battleford, Lloydminster, Medicine Hat, Swift Current

·         Growth takes off after 500,000

·         Saskatoon emerging growth reaching towards 500,000

·         Trend is loss of shopping opportunities in areas like Kindersley

·         Important for the province

·         Change in shopping areas are now minimum shopping centres

·         Thus loss of shopping opportunities in Kindersley

·         Regions based on shopping and convenience and quality of life

·         This is not the death of rural but the change

·         Rurals need to collaborate to succeed

·         Population shift is based on productivity

·         What is happening in regions?

·         Economic development is regional

·         Infrastructure is regional

·         Tax sharing for economic grain

·         Environmental costs to sprawl

·         Capital attraction is through regional collaboration

·         Regions can provide:

·         Lower taxes, better infrastructure …

·         What do regions do?

·         Retain the right people

·         Education

·         Educated and trades less likely affected by downturns

·         Social gains with smart workforce

·         Smart regions grow faster – need knowledge workers

·         Regional colleges can spearhead business training and provide incubators

·         Need to be attractive

·         Quality of life

·         Pleasant environment

·         Sustainable development

·         Family opportunities

·         Type of region

·         Entrepreneurial

·         knowledgable

·         Promote small businesses

·         Build networks

·         Provide environment to build on strengths

·         No silver bullets for rural development

·         Build within community