It could be the end of the road for the Timmins Economic Development Corporation (TEDC) in its current form.
A report at this week's Timmins council meeting is calling for the dissolution of the organization. The move is a result of a third-party review that found there's a lack of governance oversight at the TEDC.
The Timmins council meeting is on Tuesday, Feb. 6 at 6 p.m.
The recommendation is to allow for Timmins CAO Dave Landers to be given the authority to start transitioning TEDC employees into the city's employment and start the dissolution process. The city would also assume any agreements or contracts that the TEDC has entered into that extend beyond Dec. 31, 2024.
At the Jan. 30 council meeting, members talked about labour relations or employee negotiations at the TEDC during an in-camera session.
The TEDC is a non-profit that is one of the agencies, boards and commissions (ABCs) that receive municipal funding.
The longtime CEO of the TEDC, Christy Marinig, retired in December. There are 11 staff members listed on the organization's website. There is also a nine-member board.
Landers' report for this week's meeting says that KPMG completed a governance effectiveness review of the organization.
Four of the observations from that review are:
- there appears to be a significant disconnect between the city and TEDC when it comes to delivering economic development services;
- the governance oversight of the TEDC "appears to be lacking";
- using a separate economic development corporation doesn't reflect common practices for municipalities of similar sizes to Timmins; and
- selected stakeholders do not perceive the TEDC as effective in its role.
While a third party could be found to take over the governance role, Landers' report lays out the rationale for integrating the work under the city's umbrella.
He argues it will ensure that the city's strategic objectives line up with the economic development activities and complement council's priorities, offer better transparency for the outcome of projects, and allow the city to assess the value for money results from economic development investments.
Other benefits are potential operating efficiencies by being able to use administrative and other back office services, and being consistent with the best/common practices of other similar sized areas.
The item has not been approved by council.
Read the full report here.
— TimminsToday
