The City of Sault Ste. Marie is studying the merits of developing a ‘smart’ industrial park to attract new business to the city.
On Aug. 10, city council will debate the benefits of creating a park that’s geared toward advanced manufacturers, digital technology companies, energy sector firms, and other industrial and commercial users.
Along with three-phase electrical, natural gas, water and wastewater, a ‘smart’ industrial park typically includes high-speed broadband.
“In addition, there is a potential to integrate eco/green options in the ‘smart’ industrial/business park, with a strong focus on clustering companies in a single or a set of related sectors that would benefit from co-location, programming, and specialized infrastructure,” a report to council notes.
Similar parks in Ontario include the recently developed Brighton Industrial Park, east of Toronto, which has 34 lots averaging one to two acres, at a cost $35,000 per acre, with industrial development charges waived.
In an April 2019 report, Dillon Consulting found the future projected demand for industrial land in the Sault is 110 hectares (272 acres).
Currently, the city is home to roughly 543 hectares (1,340 acres) of vacant available industrial land.
But many of those properties have been deemed too small, aren’t serviced, or they pose limitations for potential users, decreasing the probability of development.
Still, the city cites a number of advantages in its favour: strategic location as a key international trade gateway; low-cost electricity, and the potential for a smart electrical grid; a strong base of both heavy and lighter manufacturing industries; and strengths in the advanced manufacturing, clean-tech/renewable energy, and information communication technology sectors.
To that end, city staff have already scouted two suitable sites for a park.
They are currently in the process of determining the cost of land acquisition and of the park’s development, and a report will follow.
