Ask Economic Development Manager Dave Rushton how’s business in Centre Wellington, and he can supply the questioner with a lot of information.
He can list businesses by their streets and by their owners. But crunching numbers is, to him, a mug’s game.
For example, ask him how many small businesses there are in the township and he asks right back the definition of a small business. Is it five employees? A home business? Ten employees? Fifty? In Toronto, for example, a small business is defined as one with fewer than 2,000 employees.
There used to be a way for municipal staff to at least say how many businesses were operating in the community – because every business was once required to have a licence.
In some places they still face that requirement, but not in Centre Wellington. Rushton can cite reasons for and against such a licence.
On the positive side, it informs local government who is in or coming into the community. He said that means the municipality can smooth the path for the new owners by explaining such things as zoning, sign bylaws, and other rules that will enable new businesses to meet regulations and reduce red tape headaches.
But on the other hand, some people see it as “one more tax” and something that might discourage businesses.
He said the township is in the process of starting a new business directory he hopes will provide some clear cut information about the number of businesses in town.
As for how many new businesses came to town in the past year, again, it becomes a matter of definition. Is it is new business if the old proprietor sells to someone else, or is it a continuation of an old business? He cited a number of businesses that simply changed hands over the past year.
Still, he said, there have probably been 10 to 15 noticeable new and expanded companies come to the community over the past year.
“Probably, we’re a pretty reasonable mix of coming and going,” he said.
He cited several major events over the past year, such as the sale of the Elora Mill Inn, the opening of the huge Keating building on Mill Street East in Elora (which allowed a large business in Fergus not only to stay in Centre Wellington, but also to expand), plus a huge expansion of Dixon Lumber and growth of a number of other businesses in the north end of Fergus.
“We’ve had a fair number of expansions in the past year,” Rushton said. He added two main buildings on St. Andrew Street in Fergus – Russell’s and Wellington Interiors – have closed their doors, but he is optimistic it will be only a matter of time before new retailers come in.
At the same time, he noted the west end of that street has added a number of new businesses over the past year and the area is starting to look once again like a retail district.
Centre Wellington is taking an active role in attracting and keeping businesses in the community and Rushton cited a number of cases where his department has helped owners find accommodations. He noted a number of new businesses have also started in Elora in the past while, offering quilts, gems and other goods. A Fergus area limousine service just increased its fleet.
“We’re in a very good environment,” Rushton said, noting that recently a very large company made enquiries to four centres about locations for a huge plant: three major cities and Centre Wellington.
He predicted there will likely be another 15 to 20 new businesses entering the community in the next year.
“That’s not counting home based businesses,” he added. Counting those can be difficult too.
Expansion
There are plans in the community for other expansions.
The Elora Business Improvement Area, for example, recently enlarged – mostly on the east side of Mill Street, which has been slowly expanding its retail area for over a dozen years.
But Rushton said that is more problematic in Fergus.
“There’s not a lot of the downtown that isn’t in it,” he said.
Shopping locally
Rushton said Centre Wellington is similar to other areas in that the local government is part of the movement to shop locally.
Wellington County also recently moved to promote itself and shopping locally, and its efforts included promotion for every local municipality.
Rushton said Centre Wellington is working on strategies to get people to shop in their home district. But he said with thousands of people leaving the community every day for work, that is difficult because they often shop in places they work.
Federal and provincial governments can play a role in business decisions too, including whether businesses locate here or elsewhere.
“We lost one big one,” he said of some recent enquiries. The company was huge, but its products are shipped outside of Ontario. When it learned those products would be taxed here, it decided to locate outside of the province.
He said there was a noticeable drop-off in enquiries in the 2009 economic slowdown from 2007 and 2008, but expects that will soon reverse.
Rushton said Ontario municipalities are not permitted to provide bonuses to companies locating in their municipality. That was a practice in the 18th century that required a municipal plebiscite and council approval, but it is no longer permitted.
Rushton said the United States still permits such things as property tax breaks and bonuses. Tongue firmly in cheek, he said Michigan, particularly hard hit in the recession, would give away the “keys to Detroit and a thousand houses” for a big business to locate there.
Centre Wellington is trying to attract new businesses and the jobs that come with them. The township designated industrial lands in its official plan of 2003 and all it will need is proper zoning when people are ready to build.
He said the township is working hard on a particular type of industry it believes it can attract because of its cultural and physical attributes.
Rushton said old style industry takes up a lot of resources, and he pointed out that one company at one time used 15% of Fergus’ total sewage and water capacity.
Today, the township is hoping to attract jobs to eco-business parks. Those would be knowledge based, creative and not require too much in municipal services.
He said, for example, an ideal business would be one that “designs” equipment such as communication devices, with perhaps the manufacturing done elsewhere. There is a very practical reason for such proposals and those types of jobs.
“They’re well paid – and the people [working at them] can afford to live here,” he said. He noted Centre Wellington is an expensive place.
“We’re not a good community for people who don’t earn very much.”
