Province highlights support for regional economies

Examples of community-led projects supported through past intakes include a small business incubator in Grande Prairie, networking and mentorship programming for women entrepreneurs in Edmonton, industrial park development on the Samson Cree Nation, employment training for new Canadians in Red Deer, local business marketing supports in Cochrane, an economic development strategy for the International Avenue Business Revitalization Zone in Calgary, an unmanned aerial systems project in Foremost and dozens more initiatives around the province.

Based on feedback from previous intakes, the Alberta government says it has also introduced a series of program enhancements to make it easier for communities to apply, including:

• Revising the program outcomes to encourage not-for-profits and municipalities to partner with private industry.

• Reducing the amount of matching funding required by First Nations and Métis Settlements from 50 per cent to 25 per cent of the total project cost.

• Shortening the application intake window from 60 days to 30 days.

• Extending eligibility to national not-for-profit organizations, associations or societies that partner with a provincially registered entity and undertake an Alberta-based project.

Here’s a look at some of the local initiatives to have received CARES program funding:

Central Alberta Refugee Effort (CARE) Committee

Alberta Global Talent – Equip to Employ Immigrants

$100,000 – Expansion of the Alberta Global Talent Program to further reach and develop tools for employers to attract, retain and utilize skilled immigrants

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Central Alberta: Access Prosperity

International Business Development Program

$88,000 – Launching an International Business Development Program to coach regional, innovative small and mediumsize enterprises (SMEs) to do business on a global scale

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Red Deer Visitor and Convention Bureau (Tourism Red Deer)

Central Alberta Tourism Alliance Accommodation Study

$50,000 – Feasibility study to identify the potential for development of fixed roof and non-fixed roof accommodation in the central Alberta region

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The City of Red Deer

Downtown Residential Attraction Study

$10,250 – Downtown residential attraction study to encourage higher-density residential development opportunities in downtown Red Deer

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Echo Lacombe Association Placemaker Rewards Program

$31,300 – Development of a rewards program app to encourage local expending and promote economic development in the community

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Red Deer Downtown Business Association

Catapult Training Program

$20,000 – Expansion of an incubator’s services to include training programs

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Town of Sylvan Lake

Sustainable Waterfront Area Redevelopment Plan

$41,850 – Development of a sustainable waterfront area strategy to replace outdated neighborhood plans and to advance municipal sustainability objectives

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Central Alberta Economic Partnership Ltd.

CAEP: Improving the Local Business Environment through Building Municipal Capacity in Investment Attraction Readiness

$ 55,250 – Multi-approach investment readiness package for CAEP municipalities

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Red Deer Visitor & Convention Bureau Destination Development Red Deer

$85,000 – Creation of a market programming for entrepreneurs and start-up companies in the region

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The City of Red Deer Business Attraction Program Red Deer

$32,500 – Delivery of a Business Attraction Program through implementing a sales and marketing strategy to attract corporate offices to the area

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by rdnewsNOW staff

Province highlights support for regional economies

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