Prosperity in Brandon

Welcome to my blog, which is primarily focused on economic activities and exploring ways of increasing prosperity in Brandon. Economic development creates a foundation that funds culture, preserves heritage, creates green spaces, and expands recreational facilities. It makes our city more vibrant.

Cities have limited levers, but Brandon can use them much more effectively. Think of Moose Jaw, Kelowna, Fargo- cities similar to Brandon and yet thriving. One of the reasons that I ran for mayor was because I believe that Brandon has huge potential to be one of those vibrant, thriving communities. And the key is to make the city and its citizens more prosperous. This will come from a well thought out strategic plan, and collaborative partnerships between the academic and business communities and City Hall.

 One of my homework assignments over the holidays was to catch up on some reading about some of the latest economic trends from other cities and regions. Here is a broad overview of some of the ideas that have me excited, where Brandon has both growth potential and natural advantages. I’ll be posting more on each of these areas over the next few weeks.

1)      First plank of the strategy (which is in progress) is to enhance Brandon’s entrepreneurial climate. Let’s grow the businesses we already have, increasing job opportunities as well as the economy. One stop shopping for entrepreneurs looking to either start or grow a business is an absolute must. Access to capital is also critical. Regardless of what new directions we go in, Brandon needs to reinforce and strengthen our existing economic base.

2)      An offshoot of this this idea is to capitalize on our natural strength as the market for western Manitoba. Services and retail sectors are thriving in our city because of the prosperity of the areas that surround us. Working in a collaborative partnership with a belief that what is good for westman is good for Brandon builds on our historic trading alliances. This has such potential one our Councilors has been specifically tasked with building stronger, wider bridges with western Manitoba communities.

3)      Attracting new business is the next plank, and I would like to see Smart Jobs as a key focus for this kind of business recruitment. Brandon has huge strengths in this area with the University, College, Fire College, RHA, and Research Station. One of the first steps in knowing what kinds of businesses would be interested in Brandon is to gather solid information about what our city’s unique competitive advantages are, what kinds of businesses we have already that are thriving, and what opportunities are there that complement our existing business environment. The City is working on compiling this information, with a report expected in February.

4)      I believe that one of the economic opportunities that Brandon needs to explore is how to keep growing our population. We are a City of approximately 50,000 with a trading area of approximately 150,000. Imagine what our city would be like if we were twice as big- air service would be a given, a broader range of retail and services, a very vibrant cultural scene. We would look more like Kelowna than Portage. Playing off our reputation as a pretty, safe city, Brandon has the opportunity to recruit some of the young retirees- Boomers with zip affectionately labeled Zoomers by some media. And I believe the most attractive market for this kind of a campaign would be Winnipeg and Regina- both large, expensive urban areas where crime is a concern. Enhancing the quality of life and quality of place are strategic initiatives that we all get to enjoy. More restaurants and leisure activities, investment in parks and recreation can transform Brandon into a destination centre for the over 50. More research in this area is needed to quantify the economic and social opportunities.

The upcoming budget deliberations are critical in laying the foundation for future growth and prosperity in Brandon. Not only do we need to do more research in these and other areas, we also need to continue with our investment in infrastructure. Infrastructure is one of the most important instruments a city has in facilitating economic development, particularly in knowledge-based and technology industries.