Demonstrating the Meaning of ‘Open for Business’

March 21, 2016

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PORT ALBERNI – The Business Examiner’s focus on boating and marine this month provides the perfect opportunity to showcase the work the Port Alberni Port Authority (PAPA) & the City of Port Alberni (CPA) are doing to demonstrate we are ‘Open for Business’. 

More than a dozen recent accomplishments of our dedication to the ‘Open for Business’ ideal span the tourism, lifestyle, high-value wood-biomass, fishing, marine industrial and transportation sectors. In the tourism sector, two recent agreements have benefited business and the community. One allowed a former large tugboat to become ‘The Swept Away Inn’ moored at PAPA’s Centennial Pier.

That required several cross-jurisdictional licensing approvals and the extension of a City water line across Harbour Quay.  Another agreement allowed us to offer a $500,000 development incentive on a highly visible marina upland. That required the willingness of both organizations to ‘horse-trade’ financial arrangements that had been entrenched in a long-standing Accord.    

On the lifestyle front, agreements between the Port Authority and City allowed for the installation of a kiteboard launch ramp in the harbour, a water lot lease for recreational purposes at Canal Beach and (coming soon) a boardwalk along the north side of Fishermen’s Harbour.  Again each party is leveraging one another’s significant financial investments in these projects. 

After the City had convinced Cantimber Biotech to look at establishing in Port Alberni, PAPA clinched the deal by arranging a site. The company will produce activated carbon for water filters from residual wood fibre and is creating 25 new jobs.  Both organizations worked with the company to get several cross-jurisdictional licensing approvals in place.

Attracting the RAW Spirit, a large hake fishing vessel, was also a joint initiative.  After the ship’s owners contacted the Port Authority to inquire if there was space for them here, the City visited the partners and maintained communications throughout their negotiations with PAPA.  Twenty-four jobs on the boat, another 25 part-time jobs for offloading and hundreds of thousands of dollars for local contractors has resulted. 

Other examples of demonstrating we are open for business won’t be told here because of space limits. 

However, our two organizations have recently ramped up our collaboration by establishing a Joint Working Group consisting of the Port Authority’s Chairman of the Board, their President & CEO, their Director of Business Development, our Mayor, the Acting City Manager and me. If you are interested in exploring the potential for your company in Port Alberni, please contact PAPA’s Dave McCormick at 250.723.5312 or the City’s Pat Deakin at 250.720.2527.      

– Pat Deakin is the Economic Development Manager for the City of Port Alberni. He can be reached at Patrick_deakin@portalberni.ca.

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