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“Thousands” of North Bay residents have shared their opinions through an online survey on the future economic direction of the city.
Organizers of a community development research project between Baylor University and the City of North Bay are urging thousands more to have their say before the deadline for submissions closes on Nov. 20.
The project is being spearheaded by Kevin Hutchinson, a North Bay financial advisor and Baylor University MBA graduate, who convinced his alma mater to focus on his Northern Ontario hometown to identify its strategic priorities for economic development.
The eight-month long exercise, involving the Texas-based university, is being done in concert with the City of North Bay and the Invest North Bay Development Corporation (formerly the city’s economic development department).
Baylor’s Firm Focus Program and its MBA students have traditionally worked with Fortune 500 companies on specific projects. It’s the first time a municipality has been the subject matter.
The process includes consulting with residents, business, community and educational leaders to gather their thoughts on what opportunities the city needs to key on.
“We are extremely impressed with the response so far,” said MBA student Jared Haney in a press release. “North Bay has such a passionate citizen base that is willing to participate on a large scale. More participants mean stronger data and actionable recommendations from the Baylor team.”
“The survey is powerful in that every resident in our region can make a meaningful contribution to the betterment of their community and help drive positive change,” said Hutchison, project co-lead and development corporation board member.
The students will present their final report next spring in pinpointing what industries the city should be actively in, where public investment dollars should flow, what industries they should attract, among other key economic opportunities.
For details on the survey, go online to investinnorthbay.ca.
