Following up on an idea first floated over a year ago, the Province of British Columbia has named Dale Richardson as its choice to head up an economic office in the Northwest dedicated to taking advantage of possibilities from expanded trade with the Asia Pacific gateway.
The office is designed to explore potential opportunities for the Northwest, many of which are hoped to be spurred on by the development of the Fairview Container Terminal.
Colin Hansen, British Columbia’s Minister of Economic Development handled the introductions of the new appointment, even though the guest of honour was currently out of the country, learning the lay of the land of trade in Asia. Richardson most recently worked on economic development projects for the Yukon Government.
Hansen stressed that one of Richardson’s duties will be to ensure that employment opportunities in Northwestern B. C., include a local labour pool, a process that he says the province has had success with thus far.
It would be guessed that he is referring to the recent hiring of workers for the Container Terminal, which held a local recruiting drive to fill many of the positions on the local docks. Which has to a degree stemmed the flow of the exodus from Prince Rupert over the last few years, which saw a large number of workers leaving the high unemployment of the northwest for better employment prospects elsewhere.
However, the Terminal jobs as welcome as they are, really are but a drop in the bucket compared to the number of people who felt the need to leave the city in search of employment. It's to expand on that start at Fairview and create more employment in the region, that will be the purpose of the economic development officer for the Asia Pacific Gateway.
With an office in Prince Rupert, Richardson will continue to work on the expansion of the Fairview Terminal as well as the creation of a break bulk port in Kitimat.
The Daily News featured the announcement and provided a sketch of his plans in the Tuesday edition.
Victoria's expert to widen the gateway to Asia trade
By Leanne Ritchie
The Daily News
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
Pages one and three
The provincial government has appointed a regional economic development officer to help guide the development of the Asia Pacific Gateway in the Northwest.
Colin Hansen, Minister of Economic Development for the province of British Columbia, confirmed that the government has hired Dale Richardson to serve in an economic development capacity for the entire region of the Northwest.
"The port expansion in Prince Rupert is not really an end in itself but something that will become a catalyst for other economic development opportunities in the Northwest," said Hansen.
While the port expansion will create direct jobs, it will also generate opportunities for the future.
"This is something Premier Gordon Campbell felt strongly about going back a year when he met with municipal leaders from around the Northwest at the Union of British Columbia Municipalities Convention," said Hansen.
While the port expansion will create direct jobs, it will also generate opportunities for the future.
“This is something Premier Gordon Campbell felt strongly about going back a year when he met with municipal leaders from around the Northwest at the Union of British Columbia Municipalities Convention,” said Hansen.
“It was out of those discussions he asked me to look at how we can put somebody on the ground to help be a catalyst for these economic opportunities.”
Richardson, who was working with the Yukon government on economic development initiatives, is currently in Asia on a familiarization tour.
His B. C. office will be based in Prince Rupert.
In addition to working on the containerization of Fairview Terminal, Richardson will also be working on the efforts to develop a break-bulk terminal in Kitimat.
“My ministry is currently funding a study on break-bulk opportunities in Kitimat. Also, if you look at the Kitimat Valley, it has some of the best opportunities for industrial land compared to pretty well anywhere else in the province,” said Hansen.
The Northwest region has air, rail and marine infrastructure and when tied all together, it’s an attractive package for investors, he said.
“We also want to make sure the residents of Prince Rupert and other Northwest communities benefit directly from the economic opportunities,” said Hansen.
Hansen continued: “that it’s not just a case of a whole new labour force being imported to take on jobs… I think to-date we have had a big success making sure there has been local hiring for the jobs that are available. That will be another area of Richardson’s responsibilities.”
Prince Rupert Mayor Herb Pond said he was pleased with the appointment. There are a number of regional issues that need to be solved to ensure Fairview is a success, including electrical and technological infrastructure.
Gord Howie, the city’s chief administrative officer, said Richardson is still finishing up a few files from his last appointment and making the move to Prince Rupert.
However, they hope to arrange a meeting between the city and the provincial representative once he has his feet firmly on the ground.
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