Sea...The Opportunity

...An Ambitious Kitimat Economic Development Strategy...

The District of Kitimat is creating an Economic Development Strategy that aims to answer fundamental questions that will shape next generation job creation and prosperity:

1. What if we could achieve the exceptional as a community?
2. What kind of community do we want to leave behind for our children and grandchildren?
3. How do we create the transformative in our plans that help get us to our aspirational horizon line?

Good things have been happening in Kitimat. But the global, national, and BC economy continues to rapidly evolve and innovate, and recent economic activity in Kitimat generates a number of considerations – from housing to placemaking – that are important economic development enablers.                  

We have a generational opportunity to have our community look back on 2023 as a landmark year. Economic Development Strategies speak the language of job creation, workforce attraction, workforce retention, and entrepreneurial enablement – which is the heartbeat of community vibrancy. But they also speak the language of broader community development and the joy we seek in life well-lived - from placemaking to housing choice and affordability. When we connect these dots into a holistic story of an ambitious future, an Economic Development Strategy can be the ONE plan that answers a question at the soul of community pride, sense of belonging, and belief in a positive future (for each of residents, investors, and visitors): who is Kitimat in future and why does it matter?

Economic development strategies specifically focus on new ways forward for:

• Investment Attraction (further sector development of large and dynamic elements of our economy like energy and manufacturing (aluminum), but also diversification opportunities – from tourism to tech);
• Business Retention & Expansion (supporting existing business in their growth plans).
• Destination Development (enabling tourism infrastructure and product development).
• Workforce Attraction and Retention Development (skills matching with employment opportunities, community development foundations like housing, etc.).
• Resident Attraction (attracting quality of life seekers & entrepreneurs).
• Marketing (investment attraction/job-creation focused salesmanship).

We can embrace big ideas about the future in an Economic Development Strategy. We also need to focus on identification of pragmatic actions that generate progress toward our vision of the future.

Help us create an ambitious Economic Development Strategy by completing a community & business survey closing June 1, 2023. Community engagement also includes key stakeholder workshops, and interviews.

Take survey here.

A final Economic Development Strategy is anticipated to be complete in June, 2023.