The transformation of the Economic Development Corporation of North Simcoe from its near-demise to a strengthened economic force for the area will be tested during upcoming council budget discussions, but not critically.
“Economic development supports the retention and growth for businesses,” said EDCNS director Cathryn Love in a conversation with MidlandToday. “Our goals are job creation, skills development, business growth and community revitalization.”
Midland, Penetanguishene, and the townships of Tay and Tiny are served by the EDCNS, and in previous years they had largely funded the organization.
However, two factors caused uncertainty to fund the organization by local councils in 2023: the perception of an inflated reserve within the EDCNS, as well as an inability to deliver key performance indicators (KPI) on what they’d accomplished while other organizations could clearly provide that information.
Given the difficulty in obtaining transparency by local councils as far back as 2021, funding was reduced greatly in 2023 and the organization was told to produce results. Several positions changed within the not-for-profit organization, and an ‘innovation hub’ was presented as the biggest offering which could be provided with financial restrictions.
“Our three key industries for the innovation hub are manufacturing, agriculture and construction,” said Love, “ so we're going to be reporting on the export growth for those industries.”
Acting as a collaborative space to bring together major roles from those sectors, Love stated that no physical space had been obtained for the hub although 2025 would be a likely year for a location to be found.
“I think our business support services have aligned with those KPIs in the past,” Love noted. “We played a part in that certainly with our manufacturing round tables that we provided, promotional videos, marketing activities – representation for North Simcoe within the county regionally.
“I don't think maybe it's been as transparent or tracked as diligently as it could be, and that's certainly something we’ll be doing going forward,” she added.
Love also shared that instead of relying on the commitment of municipal funding as the primary source over time, the organization would be expanding to municipal, provincial, federal, private sponsorship, and internal revenue to build “a sustainable model for EDCNS and the innovation hub.”
Asked if there were any gaps for the EDCNS to tackle, Love admitted that youth engagement hadn’t been as strong as she had hoped. Whether introducing the public to the Makerspace section of the Midland Public Library, partnering with local industry tours, or providing information placements in trade at higher education institutions, Love stated that those elements would also be incorporated into the innovation hub.
“When you talk to youth about job training, exploring job opportunities or entrepreneurship, at a certain age of 8 to 10 years they're starting to think about what interests them and what problems they want to solve. So we want to start having those conversations.”
MidlandToday reached out to the four North Simcoe council representatives who sit on the EDCNS board of directors for their impressions of the organization’s recent efforts, goals and achievements, but only Mayor Dave Evans of Tiny Township responded.
In his opinion, Evans said that the innovation hub had proven the EDCNS had “dedication to a more strategic and impactful path, instilling confidence in their viability and direction”, driven positively by the roles of the board of directors and Love.
“The Innovation Hub alone justifies the investment, showing the positive impact EDCNS brings to North Simcoe,” wrote Evans. “Given its success, councils are likely to support EDCNS even further to sustain and expand its benefits.”
He added that he’d hoped to see continued investment in the hub’s growth, focusing on expanding programs and setting goals that would solidify its role as a key economic asset to the community.
Love remarked that the cooperation of the four municipalities was a core strength that not many North Simcoe organizations held.
“There's obviously going to be things that people disagree on, but at the end of the day they're still showing up and having those discussions,” said Love. “EDCNS is a great representation of how all four municipalities are coming together to make this region stronger, and that's unique; it's something I haven't seen anywhere else.”
Information on the innovation hub can be found on the Economic Development Corporation of North Simcoe website.
