August 16, 2005

Kenora, Ontario

The City Council of Kenora, Ontario has passed a resolution to have the City Council assume responsibility for the delivery of Economic Development services for the City of Kenora.  The City will now administer several services formerly administered by Lake of the Woods Business Incentive Corp (LOWBIC).  LOWBIC will continue to serve the Lake of the Woods region as part of its federal mandate for regional development efforts.

“The face of LOWBIC may change, how we do our job may change a bit, but the job– to bring federal support monies, job opportunities, and community development initiatives into the region-- remains the same,” said Judy Bechard, Chair of LOWBIC.  Our region includes the city of Kenora and we wish the city council well as they resume these efforts.  This move also frees us to focus on our primary mandate which is to facilitate economic development initiatives on a regional basis as a whole,” noted Ms. Bechard .”

As a Community Futures Development Corporation (CFDC), LOWBIC has a regional mandate to offer business information, counseling and financing, community strategic planning, and community economic development (CED) services.  “The Board will continue to work with our federal partners and staff to fulfill our mandate”, Bechard said.

This move by Council allows LOWBIC to review our service agreement between LOWBIC and the City of Kenora in order to focus on our primary mission.  This change comes at an opportune time for us, commented Anneli Rosteski, Executive Director of LOWBIC, because in recent meetings with Minister Bradshaw of HRSDC we discussed LOWBIC’s successes in the region and our growing federal mandate.  We are building a dynamic team to offer a “Made in Northwestern Ontario solution” for community development that will serve regional businesses, the city of Kenora, and the First Nation Communities alike, Rosteski said.”

“Much of what we do at LOWBIC is focused on providing the technology, financing, and infrastructure for small business development.  This is an important key to developing a vibrant and sustainable rural economy for the future.  This can only help Kenora business as it becomes a center of a more dynamic regional economy, said Rosteski.”