Prosperity Agenda Part 1/3

(released at Brandon University on October 5th)

An Economic Development Strategy for Brandon

In the last few years, Brandon has experienced a remarkable period of population and job growth. It has led to a booming real estate market and an expansion in the service sector. This growth has come about primarily because of Maple Leaf and our new immigrant families, and the relocation of 2PPCLI to Shilo.

Brandon is coming to the end of that growth spurt. If we are to keep expanding our tax base and the associated enhancements to City services and quality of place and quality of life, we are going to need to develop a new economic strategy for Brandon.

This economic development strategy is based on three complementary ideas in economic development, each with its own separate release date.

1. Building a Smart City (October 5th)
2. Creating a responsive framework (October 7th)
3. Identifying and expanding competitive economic clusters (October 8th)

No doubt you've heard people refer to the New Economy, but what does that mean? Simply put- we are moving towards a knowledge-based economy (brain over brawn, better over cheap) where the keys to jobs and a higher standard of living are innovative ideas and technology. Good jobs have become technologically complex and are demanding sophisticated work skills. Jobs based on simple, low level work skills are diminishing.

Brandon cannot build a prosperous economy on low skill-low wage jobs.

Brandon is well positioned to thrive in the New Economy. We have the College and University graduating a thousand students a year, well equipped to build a future for themselves. We must tap into that potential to build a future city that offers a great quality of both place and life. We just need to figure out what to do with these incredible assets, and have a City leadership that understands that, in fact, these are assets.

What does all this talk of New Economies and Creativity have to do with the 2010 civic election in Brandon? Its about a stance, a way of thinking. The mayor is the City's civic leader. Does this person embrace change? Look for opportunities? Have a curious mind? Encourage innovation vs the way we've always done it? Because these are the characteristics that will drive a successful economy or business in the 21st century, and they are also the characteristics that will drive a successful city.

In Brandon's future, intellectual capital is a commodity and innovation is the driving force behind economic recovery and future success.

I believe that because of the new technologies and the acceleration of change, knowledge and creativity will be the centre of success in the new economy. Concentrations of skilled people, rather than raw materials, are the engines of growth.

Brandon is well positioned to maximize opportunities in the New Economy because of our university, the community college, the research station, the RHA among other assets. Access to well-educated pools of creative people (entrepreneurs, innovators, researchers, artisans, designers) is what counts.

Human capital, centres of innovation, research institutions are key assets in Brandon's future. Fostering the connections between them and the business community is critical, and the Mayor can play a lead role putting the right people around the table.

The city is one player in a complex economy. Its role in economic development is to find ways of supporting, attracting, and mobilizing the investment required to deliver increased employment, income, and assessment.

What Can Brandon Do?

Brandon needs to think about quality not quantity in terms of economic development. Just because the economic recession, globalization, new technological advances have changed the rules, doesn't mean that Brandon can't learn the rules and win the game.\

The City must act as a catalyst for other organizations, firms, and stakeholders to play their role in building an economy for the future. The economic development function of City Hall must focus on:

• developing, attracting, and retaining talent
• fostering innovation and entrepreneurship
• fostering connections that link people with ideas to talent, capital, and markets
• supporting new economic clusters, such as knowledge creation, life sciences, culinary tourism.

The City needs to champion transformative capital projects such as Brandon University's Wellness Centre, and ACC's expansion to the North Hill. These are building projects that transform who we are and how we think of ourselves as a city.

The needs to include quality of life and quality of place as assets in economic development. Our cities must be livable to attract the creative and skilled people that fuel the economy of Brandon's future. Studies show that quality of life and place are more important to attracting technology firms for example, than traditional factors such as land costs and taxes. Cultural life, diversity, environmental quality, and digital infrastructure are the magnets for economic growth in Brandon. We are a lovely, safe, clean, beautiful city.

And do those qualities have value? Imagine a commuter stuck in rush hour traffic in Toronto. Maybe it takes them an extra hour to get home that if they were doing that job in Brandon. An extra 50 minutes in each direction, 250 work days a year, 40 work years equals 1 million minutes wasted in a car. What would a person do with an extra million minutes? That can be the difference between living to work and working to live. Imagine giving back 16,667 hours to yourself, your family, your community by making a decision to live in a community life Brandon vs Toronto. And imagine the costs to operative the cars for those million minutes, and the impact on greenhouse gases. Brandon is well positioned to capitalize on our size.

• Cities are the key to economic growth- the Federal government and the Province aren't going to care as much as we do about Brandon thriving in the new economy. We have to take ownership of this ourselves.
• There is a new knowledge-based economy. We are training (and exporting) graduates for the new world where brain vs brawn is king.
• Building community capacity will be critical for success; in our people, in our infrastructure, in our competitiveness. We have all the raw ingredients; we just need to be "smarter" in how we deploy them.
• Strategic planning and allocating resources will be key in how we move forward as a city. How will we use capital assets like the Convergys Building? How will we use technology assets like the MRnet (broadband fibre optic cable that surrounds Brandon and increases our connectivity to the Internet)? How will we use the graduates from our educational institutions?
• How will we nurture local competitiveness? Winnipeg used to be the primary threat to Brandon's growth, but other communities in rural Manitoba are now stepping up to the plate and fixing Brandon a run for its money. Russell, Neepawa, and Portage are expanding the toolbox for economic growth; Morden Winkler Steinbach will soon have larger populations than Brandon. Brandon has been resting on its laurels and now our rural neighbours are seizing the advantage.