Elliot Lake’s economic development manager may not have gotten the turnout he was hoping for at a town hall meeting Wednesday evening, but he did get the opportunity to talk about what his department is doing and plans for the near future, sparking a solid conversation among the handful of people who showed up.
Steve Antunes told those in attendance that the gathering was meant to make public the work done by the two-man economic development department as well as future plans, and also to see that the issues raised would go to the department’s standing committee for further discussion.
He started the meeting by talking about the success of this summer's local sales event. The initiative saw businesses extend their hours of operation to give shoppers more choice than their normal opening times.
Antunes said the July event was quite successful and the department received about 700 purchases for a draw, with some businesses staying open more days to piggyback on the one-evening shopping event.
The department and businesses are currently planning a winter event. He said the exact date will be announced closer to the day of the event, with shoppers expected to see bargains while carollers and Santa make the rounds in the business area to celebrate the season and entertain.
Antunes said his department is also working to attract new workers to the community to help businesses find people to fill positions. To assist with finding workers, the department works with several outside organizations looking to bring workers in, he said.
The effort was questioned by one resident at the meeting, who asked what the city is doing to provide places to live for those interested in taking a job here and living here.
Antunes acknowledged the shortage of rental housing. He said the shortage is tied to the cost of building new rental accommodation at about $650 per square foot. He suggested it’s a price that would make it difficult for investors to get a return on their investment.
“Housing does come up very often,” Antunes said of the work to bring in workers from outside Elliot Lake. “Housing right now on the rental portion, we’re at about 2 per cent on the rental. There are over 100 resale homes. Elliot Lake is not suffering from a housing stock lack.”
The resident also raised the question of affordable housing for those who cannot afford traditional accommodation, with Antunes saying affordable housing or a lack thereof is not the responsibility of the city. He said he has looked at the federal government’s recent announcement of available funding to build affordable housing, but said the announcement is one thing, reality can be different with the no government announcements about how successful the program was.
Antunes also said the plan to open up the tourism information centre at the intersection of Highway 17 and 108 proved successful. There were an estimated 50 daily inquiries during the time it was open, as opposed to about 10 when it was housed in the former civic centre building in the city, he said. He said he hopes to extend the time the information centre is operated over the summer next year.
He pointed to one inquiry where one of the people at the centre suggested to a visitor that Laurentian Lodge could be a place to visit. The visitor, according to Antunes, returned to the centre to thank the volunteer for the suggestion and mentioned they had decided to stay for several days at the lodge.
Antunes said the 12 highway billboards about all-season recreational activities in Elliot Lake are also attracting interest and visitors to the city.
Promoting recreational activities, he said, could see a number of U.S. snowmobilers making the trek across the border to take advantage of a wide range of trails for the sport they are not hesitant to spend money on. The favourable dollar conversion rate is also expected to attract snowmobilers from Michigan to make the trek north as gasoline prices may climb to $2 later this year, discouraging snowmobilers from southern Ontario from making the trip north.
Antunes acknowledged the department is always looking for possible ideas to increase interest in the community.