City Merges Economic Development Efforts into “Invest Medicine Hat”
Medicine Hat – The City of Medicine Hat will proceed with a restructuring that will see the City’s land and business support and investment attraction activities come together as the Economic Development and Land Department operating under the Invest Medicine Hat brand. The change was approved at the August 19 meeting of City Council.
For the past four years investment attraction has been conducted through an external contract that initiated and brought life to the Invest Medicine Hat (IMH) brand. These efforts will continue under the Invest Medicine Hat namesake with a broader mandate and staff embedded within the City structure.
“The efforts of our Land and Business Support Department have resulted in significant improvements to how the City facilitates business development, how we participate in the broader economic development network in the city and the region, and how well we progress in pursuing focused initiatives such as infill development. Invest Medicine Hat has also experienced a great deal of success in attracting new industry and business to our community,” said Robert Nicolay, CAO with City of Medicine Hat. “Combining the two areas will create an opportunity to take Medicine Hat’s already successful efforts within the local and regional economic development network and business community up another notch.”
The new Invest Medicine Hat organization will report directly to the CAO and will focus on all aspects of economic development, land development, real estate sales and management, and commercial relations.
“This move will allow a more natural integration between investment attraction efforts and business retention and expansion and workforce development efforts, and the work the City currently undertakes in land development and real estate sales and management,” added Nicolay. “It will also provide IMH staff with effective and efficient access to City supports and processes to facilitate their efforts and foster improved communication and coordination of strategy across all of our economic development functions and networks.”
The change is effective September 1, 2019.
For further information, please contact:
Ashley Wiebe
Communications Officer
City of Medicine Hat
403.529-8296
For the past four years investment attraction has been conducted through an external contract that initiated and brought life to the Invest Medicine Hat (IMH) brand. These efforts will continue under the Invest Medicine Hat namesake with a broader mandate and staff embedded within the City structure.
“The efforts of our Land and Business Support Department have resulted in significant improvements to how the City facilitates business development, how we participate in the broader economic development network in the city and the region, and how well we progress in pursuing focused initiatives such as infill development. Invest Medicine Hat has also experienced a great deal of success in attracting new industry and business to our community,” said Robert Nicolay, CAO with City of Medicine Hat. “Combining the two areas will create an opportunity to take Medicine Hat’s already successful efforts within the local and regional economic development network and business community up another notch.”
The new Invest Medicine Hat organization will report directly to the CAO and will focus on all aspects of economic development, land development, real estate sales and management, and commercial relations.
“This move will allow a more natural integration between investment attraction efforts and business retention and expansion and workforce development efforts, and the work the City currently undertakes in land development and real estate sales and management,” added Nicolay. “It will also provide IMH staff with effective and efficient access to City supports and processes to facilitate their efforts and foster improved communication and coordination of strategy across all of our economic development functions and networks.”
The change is effective September 1, 2019.
For further information, please contact:
Ashley Wiebe
Communications Officer
City of Medicine Hat
403.529-8296
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