Very interesting virtual Oshawa Economic Outlook meeting this morning. This was the City of Oshawa's 15th annual Economic Summit, with the following agenda: Mayor Carter's 10 minute opening remarks, Director of Economic Development Kyle Benham's presentation with a dozen slides highlighting some current/future positive growth outlooks.
A panel discussion followed with presentations from Sali Fitzpatrick, Senior Account Manager from the Business Development Bank of Canada; Roger Bouma and Chris Tryovolas local real estate agents with both residential and commercial, industrial, investment (ICI) stats outlining some promising investment prospects.
First slides about # of jobs in Oshawa 68,000 and # of Companies 11,144 with a overview of types of employment; and in 2020 strong year with $500 million in construction building permits.
The next slides shone a spotlight on the good news about General Motors spending $1.3 Billion to reopen the automotive assembly plant to shift into new truck production with 2,000 new jobs by next fall.
Then came an overview of what is happening at the Harbor with Hamilton Oshawa Port Authority land use plan soon to be presented. The Panatonni 600,000 sq ft. warehouse project is nearing completing and another 107,000 sq.ft. industrial building next door is 80% leased with just one 20,000 sq.ft. unit remaining. The Region of Durham is funding the pre-servicing of lands at Northwood business park, with hope for a future Regional Hospital in that area, close to Hwy 407/Ontario Tech & Durham College.
The expansion and new buildings at Trent Durham campus were described, with mention of the fact the university has acquired two new adjacent properties and recently opened its new residential building with additional classrooms; also touched on were the new programs and buildings at Ontario Tech and Durham College, plus the construction of 14 buildings for 35 businesses at the RIOCAN Simcoe St. N & Winchester Rd site.
The final slides were concerning the many plans approved for downtown growth. I taped the 2 minute downtown segment and hope to download it later, time permitting. The anticipated growth from the current downtown 5,000 residents to 35,000 was most interesting.
Being well-informed and having the right information at the right time is key to success. It is important that the City of Oshawa continues to raise awareness of its current local economic drivers, opportunities for growth, with statistical data and projected trends. The theme of this year's 15th annual Economic Summit was most appropriately "REBOUND". Spreading the word how bright Oshawa's future certainly looks, even during this time when the pandemic has so many residents and businesses questioning the future.
A panel discussion followed with presentations from Sali Fitzpatrick, Senior Account Manager from the Business Development Bank of Canada; Roger Bouma and Chris Tryovolas local real estate agents with both residential and commercial, industrial, investment (ICI) stats outlining some promising investment prospects.
First slides about # of jobs in Oshawa 68,000 and # of Companies 11,144 with a overview of types of employment; and in 2020 strong year with $500 million in construction building permits.
The next slides shone a spotlight on the good news about General Motors spending $1.3 Billion to reopen the automotive assembly plant to shift into new truck production with 2,000 new jobs by next fall.
Then came an overview of what is happening at the Harbor with Hamilton Oshawa Port Authority land use plan soon to be presented. The Panatonni 600,000 sq ft. warehouse project is nearing completing and another 107,000 sq.ft. industrial building next door is 80% leased with just one 20,000 sq.ft. unit remaining. The Region of Durham is funding the pre-servicing of lands at Northwood business park, with hope for a future Regional Hospital in that area, close to Hwy 407/Ontario Tech & Durham College.
The expansion and new buildings at Trent Durham campus were described, with mention of the fact the university has acquired two new adjacent properties and recently opened its new residential building with additional classrooms; also touched on were the new programs and buildings at Ontario Tech and Durham College, plus the construction of 14 buildings for 35 businesses at the RIOCAN Simcoe St. N & Winchester Rd site.
The final slides were concerning the many plans approved for downtown growth. I taped the 2 minute downtown segment and hope to download it later, time permitting. The anticipated growth from the current downtown 5,000 residents to 35,000 was most interesting.
Being well-informed and having the right information at the right time is key to success. It is important that the City of Oshawa continues to raise awareness of its current local economic drivers, opportunities for growth, with statistical data and projected trends. The theme of this year's 15th annual Economic Summit was most appropriately "REBOUND". Spreading the word how bright Oshawa's future certainly looks, even during this time when the pandemic has so many residents and businesses questioning the future.
