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<\/p>\nMayor Andrew Knack is fully aware that there\u2019s a widespread perception that city hall is unfriendly to business.<\/p>\n
Construction projects obstruct business rather than help it. The city\u2019s industrial and commercial tax base is bleeding away to the surrounding areas. There are issues when it comes to safety, and questions about how to improve the nighttime economy. There\u2019s a perception that business permits and licensing take too long.<\/p>\n
As the city\u2019s executive committee pondered the need to refresh Edmonton\u2019s economic development strategy, Knack admitted the city has to do a whole lot better when it comes to creating a business-friendly environment.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t think we\u2019ve been as serious about economic development as we need to be,\u201d Knack said Wednesday.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you went and asked every municipality, every leader in every municipality, do you believe in economic development? Is that important for any municipality? I think everyone would, of course, say yes. But, at the end of the day, words are one thing, actions are something entirely different, and that\u2019s where I feel like the city has not been doing as much as we\u2019ve needed.\u201d<\/p>\n
The plan to refresh the city\u2019s economic development plan is really a collection of smaller initiatives, ranging from streamlining the permitting and licensing process to ensuring the city\u2019s facilities can continue to host major international events. There\u2019s a focus on Downtown safety and cleanliness, and on consolidating business support to key areas of economic strength in the city. And, the city needs to do more to build its brand.<\/p>\n
City staff met with 37 different organizations over 15 different business sectors before hitting the \u201crefresh\u201d button.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we set our strategic priorities in January, we\u2019re clear that economic development needs to be a core priority, and there need to be clear and measurable outcomes within that, and so that\u2019s why I\u2019m encouraged that actually we\u2019ll be taking this seriously in a way that maybe we haven\u2019t been for quite some time,\u201d said Knack.<\/p>\n
A big concern is the residential tax base carries a disproportionate burden when it comes to supporting the city\u2019s budget. Knack and the councillors acknowledged the need to increase the commercial and industrial base, which means more needs to be done to attract businesses, and to make sure they\u2019re not lost to Leduc or Strathcona County when the time comes for them to expand.<\/p>\n
The revamp has the support of BILD Edmonton Metro, which represents builders and developers across the city.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe encourage continued attention to the factors that influence investment decisions and business confidence,\u201d wrote Kalen Anderson, BILD\u2019s chief executive officer. \u201cThroughout our industry, we regularly hear the perceptions of safety, vibrancy and overall quality of place influence where investors choose to commit capital, businesses choose to locate and employees choose to work.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Crews lay down plastic flooring as they begin the process of creating an outdoor hockey rink at Commonwealth Stadium for the Heritage Classic in Edmonton on Oct. 17, 2023.<\/p>\n
Attracting events<\/p>\n
One of the major actions is for the city to continue to try and attract a dozen \u201cworld-class\u201d sporting and cultural events throughout the year.<\/p>\n
But there\u2019s an understanding that, outside of Rogers Place, the venues that can host these events are aging. So, from 2027-2030, the city will look at the requirements needed at venues like the Kinsmen Fieldhouse and Commonwealth Stadium, which is racing towards its 50th birthday.<\/p>\n
And, make no mistake, Commonwealth is a big stadium, but not a modern one.<\/p>\n
Rob Notenboom is the president of the Voyageurs, the Canadian soccer supporters\u2019 group. Hundreds of their members came from across the country for the June 1 Canada-Uzbekistan match at Commonwealth Stadium. More than 46,000 tickets were sold for the game.<\/p>\n
Notenboom, who came in from Regina, said the sightlines at Commonwealth are \u201cfine,\u201d but the concourses can\u2019t handle the crowds when the stadium is close to selling out.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt halftime, you can\u2019t move, can\u2019t get to the washroom, can\u2019t get food or beverages,\u201d said Notenboom. \u201cI\u2019d say it\u2019s even unsafe.\u201d<\/p>\n
Knack said there likely won\u2019t be any money in the next four-year budget to address Commonwealth, but it will eventually need to be on the table.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s an incredible stadium, but it\u2019s also an aging stadium, and so there will be a point at which further renewal work will be needed, and so that will be something that we do,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
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<\/p>\n
Free-of-charge Downtown Winterval on 104 Street north of Jasper Avenue.<\/p>\n
Nighttime economy<\/p>\n
Improving the nighttime economy is not an overt part of the economic development refresh, but administration told councillors that making Edmonton more vibrant after dark is part and parcel of many of the recommendations.<\/p>\n
In 2024, city council received a report on how to improve the nighttime economy. But Downtown business leaders have blasted the city for what they see as inaction that followed.<\/p>\n
During a 2025 mayoral debate, Puneeta McBryan, the then-CEO of the Edmonton Downtown Business Association, called the city\u2019s work on vibrancy in the core an \u201cabsolute disaster.\u201d<\/p>\n
Tyson Cale Boyd, a partner in the Starlite Room,\u00a0 a Downtown concert venue, said the previous council fumbled the nighttime economy strategy.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey shelved the project at the time it was needed most,\u201d said Boyd. \u201cBut, for this council, I guess we\u2019ll see.\u201d<\/p>\n
McBryan, who is now a private business owner, said there is often money for non-profit arts organizations, but when it comes to private businesses that contribute to the city\u2019s cultural life and vibrancy, there isn\u2019t much. She said the Starlite Room and Aviary, two privately run Downtown venues, don\u2019t get the support they need. As well, she targeted the city\u2019s plan to introduce licensing fees to bars that have sidewalk patios as a problem.<\/p>\n
Renee Williams, the executive director of the Edmonton Arts Council, said more needs to be done to include the creative communities in the city\u2019s economic development plan.<\/p>\n
\u201cToo often, arts and culture are framed as \u2018nice to have,’\u201d said Williams, reminding council that city arts organizations generate more than $170 million a year, and create 1,400 jobs.<\/p>\n
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<\/p>\n
The Edmonton Downtown Farmers Market on Jan. 20, 2024.<\/p>\n
\u2018Shop local\u2019 isn\u2019t enough<\/p>\n
The city does have a shop-local promotion, and there is a push to make it easier for local businesses to do business with the city itself.<\/p>\n
But two neighbourhood business improvement associations said that these economic development refreshers don\u2019t do enough to help small-business owners. And there\u2019s a worry that there may be too much focus on Downtown.<\/p>\n
The Canadian Federation of Independent Business found that \u201cnine out of 10\u201d small business owners feel that the city is not doing enough to support them.|<\/p>\n
Luwam Kiflemariam, the executive director of the 124 Business Association, said that the shop local is \u201cinsufficient on its own.\u201d She said what\u2019s needed is real support for small-business owners to help them overcome their daily and long-term challenges. She said more support is needed for the business improvement associations, which know what their members need.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat\u2019s missing is a dedicated business improvement area (BIA) investment program,\u201d said Kiflemariam.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe plan is to study BIAs, not invest in them.\u201d<\/p>\n
Todd Janes, the executive director of the Stony Plain Road and Area Business Association, said the city needs to do more at the business grassroots level.<\/p>\n
\u201cBusiness attraction and retention is competitive,\u201d said Janes. \u201cAnd Edmonton is losing its edge to surrounding municipalities.\u201d<\/p>\n
And, while investment in Downtown is important, he said more needs to be done to help business areas in other parts of Edmonton.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere has to be better quality in how to support a larger city,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The committee debated a motion that would see administration create a currently unfunded service package to assist business associations.<\/p>\n
Knack said there simply isn\u2019t money in the budget to address the full wish list from the BIAs.<\/p>\n
\u201cLet\u2019s focus on the areas that we can really lean into,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Coun, Keren Tang worried the plan calls for new staff to be hired in 2027 to support the economic development initiatives. She worried that the pace of change is too slow.<\/p>\n
\u201cCould we not wait two years to strike that up?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n
Coun. Aaron Paquette bristled when he was told by city manager Eddie Robar that it could take 20-25 years for the city to hit the long-term goals.<\/p>\n
Paquette said the city is in \u201can existential state\u201d and has to right the ship in short order, not a two-decade timeline.<\/p>\n
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