The Economic Development Advisory Committee will be giving way to a newly created Economic Development Executive Committee, to put economic development centre stage, and give Council more direct access to the Town’s economic future, according to a release issued on Monday.
“With the ongoing global pandemic, and the demolition of our mill underway, economic development is of critical importance to the residents of the Town of Fort Frances,” stated the release. “In recent weeks, the Town of Fort Frances has taken actions to place Economic Development at the forefront, so that we can enhance service, and give our council the ability to actively participate in decision-making and stay informed of the latest developments.”
Over the past two months, an Ad-Hoc Economic Development Review Committee examined the structure of the Town of Fort Frances Economic Development Advisory Committee, the role of its economic development service provider, the Rainy River Future Development Corporation (RRDFC), and the Town’s reporting relationship with both entities. Significant consideration was given to how to create a more direct role for Council to facilitate quick decision- making and determine how Council could be better positioned to support and promote Economic Development in our community, said the release.
The Committee has completed its review process and has recommended a number of changes which were approved by Council. The recommendations are as follows:
- The Town will create a new Economic Development Executive Committee (EDEC) of Council to complement the current other four executive committees of Council. These are Community Services, Operations & Facilities, Planning & Development and Administration & Finance.
- That the new committee include ex-officio members from area organizations, members of Town Administration and members of the Public, who will be added at the invitation of Council.
- That the RRFDC will continue to be retained as the primary Economic Development service provider for the community. Through recommendations from the EDEC, the Town will also have the flexibility to retain additional economic development service provider(s) on any special project assignment.
- That the existing Economic Development Advisory Committee (EDAC) be eliminated.
“The Town is excited to move forward with this new chapter, and to continue our longstanding relationship with the Rainy River Future Development Corporation. We believe that this new direction will allow us to better address the challenges we face in rebuilding and diversifying our local economy,” stated Mayor June Caul. We would like to thank the members of the Economic Development Advisory Committee for their time, and their expertise. Their contributions have helped to make our community a better place. We wish all of the members of EDAC the very best in their future endeavors”.
