One of the secret ingredients to our success at Northern Development Initiative Trust is hitting the road and seeing the communities we serve through the eyes of people who are most passionate about them. Joan Atkinson is one of those people.
Yesterday, my colleague Samuel Cawkell and I spent the day in beautiful Mackenzie. We were able to see first-hand how more than $700,000 in funding to the community recreation centre has completely transformed that facility into one of Northern B.C.'s premier multi-use facilities that supports resident attraction and retention. We also witnessed how our investments in beach infrastructure, bike parks, facade improvements, shop local initiatives, small business support, ski hill and airport upgrades, development of a youth centre, internships, an economic development officer and branding have catalyzed Mackenzie as it positions itself as a destination lifestyle community. Despite hemorrhaging 400 jobs due to forestry consolidation in recent years, realtors in town have never been busier. Housing prices are up. New investments in high speed Internet, community infrastructure and crypto/server farms are creating local jobs.
While there, Joan insisted we trek up Morfee Mountain to view the Ridgeline Trail (https://lnkd.in/gM7NdN56) in the alpine, which at 14km in length is the longest shuttle-access downhill trail in B.C. With endless views of the Northern Rockies in the background, I realized it's an asset people would pay an arm and a leg to experience and yet it's only an easy 10-minute drive from town. Worth. It.
Leaving town I was reminded not only of the genuine passion and get-it-done attitude people have in communities around #NorthernBC, but also how an entity such as the Trust serves as a tool that enables community transformation on an ongoing basis.
Not a bad day on the job.
#economicdevelopment
