By IAN ROSS
The signs of a prosperous local economy are everywhere.
Big box stores are going up in the city's north end, several new subdivisions and schools are under development and there's new public and private investment in the Sault's manufacturing and energy sector.
For the first times in many years, the city's largest employer and economic foundation, Algoma Steel, is on solid financial footing. New Indian ownership, Essar Global Ltd., has big plans to train more apprentices and invest $500 million in upgrades to double steel production.
While the Sault's population stands at 74,948, its lowest since the early 1970s, there's a renewed sense of optimism and well-being in the community.
"I've never seen the economy this robust," says the Sault's Economic Development Corporation president Bruce Strapp.
Only four years ago Algoma and the entire steel industry was near bankruptcy. Since then global steel prices have increased and Algoma is one of North America's most profitable steelmakers
But it was a wake-up call to community leaders to seek diversification and find ways to attract investment wherever possible.
Now with the Sault's unemployment rate hovering around 6 per cent, the challenge of finding enough people to work "came quicker than anticipated," says Strapp.
Call centres are one of the Sault's largest private employers at more than 4,000 full and part-time workers and have boosted household incomes.
However, the local forestry industry such as Boniferro Mill Works and St. Marys Paper have taken their lumps on the export front with a strong Canadian dollar and a soft U.S. housing market.
A top priority among city officials is growing the Sault's promising IT and sciences sector. Algoma University College, the Innovation Centre and government forestry researchers are teaming up to create a convergence centre to commercialize science and technology in the region.
In the energy field, Brookfield Power has installed Canada's biggest wind farm west of town and Pod Generating is installing a 20-megawatt solar project.
There's a big push to investigate the Sault's transportation options including receiving container goods by rail to reload onto trucks for the U.S. market.
During an overseas trade mission to China last spring to promote the multi-modal initiative, a city delegation made contact with a copper pipe manufacturer with aims on expanding into North America.
"It's the first mission I've ever been on where you meet proponents who actually want to set up your community," says Strapp. He's hopeful of some substantial local investment by the company within two years.
As part of the city's ongoing transportation study, a local group of business people are taking another look at establishing an export dock on the St. Mary's River.
The EDC has consultants investigating the capital costs and operating model to build a commercial dock for local shippers near Algoma Steel's private dock.
"The proponents are really eager to get something done by next year," says Michael Wozny, executive director of Development Sault Ste. Marie.
On the building front, Rick Thomas, Sault Ste. Marie Construction Association president, says the local economy looks the healthiest he's ever seen it.
There's a slew of construction projects worth more than $770 million either in progress or in the queue over the next three years.
"We're in good shape," says Thomas. "We have a market that I see some longevity to it."
Thomas says the long-term stability offers great prospects for industry and educators to start training people ahead of time.
Thomas says a local industry trends report suggests there's a real disconnect in matching prospective trades candidates with those that can train and teach them.
"The construction industry doesn't train people, it steals them from each other," says Thomas. "We're afraid to build up our workforce because we have a difficult time keeping them employed."
There's a shortfall of bricklayers, pipefitters, crane operators, millwrights, electricians, as well as supervisory personnel, sales and management people.
As construction projects pile up, the association is encouraging owner-clients to stage their developments.
He calls the construction of a new hospital a "huge success story" and credits EllisDon Construction for hiring local tradespeople and contractors on a sub-trades basis in mechanical, excavation, steel erection, fabrication and installation.
The issuance of a $154 million city building permit for the new hospital has boosted overall construction values in the Sault for the year to $215.8 million.
It's also been a very healthy year in home building with 531 permits issued at the end of August worth an estimated $24.7 million, and 113 permits for commercial buildings valued at $16.6 million.
While the Sault's population inched up marginally by 0.5 per cent from the 2001 census and there's anecdotal evidence that young Saultites who left in the late 1990s are returning home with families to find work.
For the first time in 10 years, the Sault is on the positive side of the migration ledger.
Statistics Canada numbers show out-migration has slowed from a height of more than 1,900 in 1999-2000 to an addition of 116 in 2004-2005.
Service Canada stats say advertised job vacancies are also increasing every year from 2,431 in 2001, to 8,041 in 2006. There's job openings in sales and service, and business and administration, with opportunities in natural and applied sciences, and trades and transport.
But not everyone is benefitting.
"We're concerned about creating a sub-population of working poor," says Ken Coulter, Executive Director of Community Quality Improvement (CQI), who's involved in a community plan on homelessness.
In 2006, a local report on homelessness reported there were close to 1,000 who slept in a shelter or hostel, with another 18,000 living at or below the poverty line.
"There's a large population who are teetering on the edge and as the cost of living rises will they go on, or be part of a working class poor that falls farther behind?" says Coulter.
