There was a lot of talk about reducing bureaucratic delays when the City of Maple Ridge hosted an Economic Development Summit on Wednesday, Oct. 11.
An audience of about 100 people at The Act heard keynote speaker Brenda Bailey, BC Minister of Jobs, Economic Development and Innovation, and then a panel of experts on stage discuss issues ranging from farmland, First Nations involvement, and delays caused by red tape.
Mayor Dan Ruimy set the scene – a city of almost 100,000 population, growing at double the national average.
“Maple Ridge is a competitive location for new investment and business opportunities, strategically positioned in the heart of the Lower Mainland, and a critical thoroughfare to move people and goods throughout the region.”
“We are embarking on a significant economic development and investment attraction initiative, while at the same time pursuing housing affordability and climate action impact strategies.”
Panel speaker Josh Gaglardi, founder and president of Orion Construction, has been working toward an industrial park development in Maple Ridge, also said “the main thing for us is streamlining regulatory processes, and permit processes.”
His project is 30 acres in the Hammond Area, that will provide up to 2,000 jobs after completion and hundreds of millions in economic benefit to Maple Ridge.
“The problem is that we’ve been a couple years into this process already, and we’re already looking at a couple years out ahead of us,” said Gaglardi.
“There’s a world of opportunity in Maple Ridge, and the development community and the construction community see that,” he added.
“Generally it’s a great municipality to work in,” he added, saying builders get more personal service than in larger municipalities, and he sees tremendous opportunity in the city.
Another panel member, Matthew Laity, whose family has been in Maple Ridge for six generations, spoke about his robotic milking barn at his dairy farm. He said securing a building permit for his new barn was “very challenging.” His cousins who are trying to build a brewery have been waiting for building approvals for three years.
“Some of the regulation and red tape has been challenging,” said Laity.
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Ruimy acknowledge that the city has work to do for builders.
“We have to streamline our processes, so it makes it easier to get a building permit, to get a business licence – if we make it difficult, why would anybody want to come here?” he said.
“We’re trying to change the culture of the way we do business,” Ruimy added.
Marco Dekovic, the VP of Global Container Terminals, said Maple Ridge is the last “frontier” to develop in the region, and that the city is on taking the right approach.
“I think Maple Ridge is on the right track,” he said. “I think the fact that you’re having this panel today says a lot, and shows leadership. I think we have a great opportunity here to get it right.”
Minister Bailey quipped that her portfolio – Jobs, Economic Development and Innovation – has the best acronym in politics.
“I get to call myself the minister of JEDI.”
The onetime software entrepreneur, told the audience she thinks about local success stories including Triple Tree Nurseryland, Bill’s Skate Shop, and Lordco Auto Parts. She noted the city has seen growth in business licences, including an increase of 5.2 per cent in 2022.
“These are strong numbers, that everyone in this room should be proud of.”
“That said, as a government we do understand there are significant challenges people and businesses are facing – global inflation and rising interest rates are making life far more expensive,” she said.
She said the government’s economic plan has it leading all large provinces in GDP growth since the first year of government in 2017, with 13.7 per cent growth over that time. She said the unemployment rate is below the national average, and exports hit a record $65 billion last year, and she said the tech sector and biotech sectors are both growing rapidly.
Asked how Maple Ridge can take advantage of the growth in biotech, she said the availability of land is key.
“Maple Ridge has opportunity because you have land, and that is such a competitive advantage for this region,” answered Bailey. “The shortage of industrial land in our province is a throttle on growth, and you have a solution. That’s a number one place to start.”
She said future collaborations are there for the taking.
“When I meet with companies that are looking to invest in British Columbia, and looking for industrial land, I know that I can guide them to Maple Ridge,” said Bailey.
It was the third and final installment of the city’s Leadership Summit Series in 2023, which earlier looked at the housing crisis and climate change.
“The key to success is creating spaces for important conversations, which opens the door to leveraging partnerships and collaboration to make meaningful progress on topics such as today’s focus of economic development,” said Ruimy.
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