Economic Development Strategy - Status Report
The Economic Development Committee recommends that:
(1)the following persons be appointed to the Economic Development Strategy Steering
Committee of the Economic Development Committee:
Councillor Cho - as a member of the Economic Development and Parks Committee
Councillor Giansante - as a member of the Economic Development and Parks
Committee; and
(2)Councillor Davis remain on this Steering Committee as a non-member of the
Economic Development and Parks Committee.
The Committee reports, for the information of Council, having:
(1)received the report (May 6, 1999) from the Commissioner, Economic Development,
Culture and Tourism and expressed its appreciation to staff in this regard; and
(2)referred the communication (April 28, 1999) from Councillor Bossons, to the Strategy
Steering Committee for consideration.
The Economic Development Committee submits the following report (May 6, 1999) from
the Commissioner of Economic Development, Culture and Tourism:
Purpose:
To update Committee and Council on the status of the Economic Development Strategy and
outline of the workplan for completion.
Funding Sources, Financial Implications and Impact Statement:
The recommendations of this report do not have any financial implications for the City.
Recommendations:
It is recommended that:
(1)this report be received for information.
Council Reference:
At its meeting on October 28, 29 and 30, 1998, City Council adopted, as amended, Clause No.
2 of Report No. 3 of the Economic Development Committee, headed "Proposed Plan for
Developing an Economic Development Strategy for the City of Toronto". That report set out a
process and established the six objectives, summarized below, for the development of a
strategic plan for economic development:
(1)to establish a vision that has relevance and validity for Council, the private sector and
City staff;
(2)to establish a context for the development of workplans and budgets for the Economic
Development Division over the next 3 to 5 years;
(3)to undertake a consultation process with business groups and clients to ensure current
issues, priorities, opportunities and approaches are recognized;
(4)to seek input from a broad cross section of the community;
(5)to invite the active participation of Economic Development Committee members; and
(6)to assist in building cross jurisdictional teams, gather current industry intelligence and
expand our contact base.
Economic Development staff have been working with business representatives, other City
staff and federal and provincial officials to achieve these objectives.
Discussion:
National, state and local economies around the world are going through a period of
tremendous change as we move from an industrial to an information and knowledge-based
economy. Businesses are being restructured, trade barriers removed, and strategic alliances
formed. The trend toward ever increasing urbanization, and the ongoing technology and
telecommunications revolution have reinforced the importance of cities and city-regions as
major trading centres within a global village.
With great change comes great opportunity. The amalgamation of seven former municipalities
to form the new City of Toronto provides a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to implement new
ideas, new approaches, and new ways of doing business. Our economic strategies must change
to view Toronto as an international city, not solely as the major centre within Canada. The
Economic Development Strategy was initiated to provide a strong, clear and concise vision,
set strategic goals to achieve that vision, and establish key priorities to focus our efforts and
mobilize resources over the next three to five years.
The following summarizes the activities completed to date and the workplan for the next few
months to complete the strategy.
1.Steering Committee:
The Steering Committee, comprised of Councillor Ashton (Chair), Councillor Davis,
Councillor Faubert, Ted Mallett (Canadian Federation of Independent Business), Bruce
McKelvey (Toronto Board of Trade), Trish Stovel (Metro Labour Education Centre), Larry
Tanenbaum (Kilmer Van Nostrand), as well as Brenda Librecz (Managing Director Economic
Development) and myself have provided overall direction to the study.
2.Consultation:
Over 400 business representatives attended the plenary session and six workshops held last
fall. This initial round of consultations provided a broad overview of the business
community's perspective on Toronto's strengths and the challenges we face heading into the
21st century. The comments received at the workshops are summarized in the "Growing
Toronto's Economy: Business Perspectives" feedback report which will be distributed at the
May 21, 1999 meeting of the Economic Development Committee. The feedback report will be
forwarded to all participants, business associations, and labour groups as well as City,
Provincial and Federal government staff for their information and to solicit additional input.
In summary, businesses told us that Toronto is a good place to do business. We have a diverse,
well educated and dedicated work force; social, cultural and recreational amenities that
provide an excellent quality of life; access to senior private and public decision makers; the
basic infrastructure to support business (airports, rail, highways, telecommunications, etc.) in
place; a great location in close proximity to major U.S. markets; and a City that is adopting a
pro-business attitude. But businesses also told us that we cannot rest on our laurels. Much of
our success is the result of past investment decisions and actions. Participants at all six
workshops noted a number of common challenges. Our infrastructure is aging; there is still too
much red tape; and there is a great deal of concern about high business taxes, user charges and
fees that discourage expansion and new investment. To create a high-performance economy in
the 21st century, business, government, labour and educators must work in partnership to
create a supportive business environment; invest in infrastructure and knowledge; and build
idea and innovation networks that create opportunities and attract investment.
The second round of consultations, to be undertaken concurrently with the research activities
discussed below, will generally be organized around groups with a common interest (e.g.,
sector groups, industry associations). Senior economic development staff and members of the
Steering Committee will also be meeting with business and community leaders on a
one-on-one basis. The primary purpose of these consultations is to broaden and deepen our
understanding of the key issues that need to be addressed to expand specific areas of our
economy. Participants will also be asked to identify practical solutions that government and
industry can undertake in partnership to improve Toronto's competitive position.
The third and final round of consultation will circulate draft economic strategies and policies
for review and comment.
3.Research:
Economic Development and City Planning staff have worked together to prepare terms of
reference for an economic competitiveness study that will provide input to both the Economic
Development Strategy and the Official Plan. The focus of this research is to examine
Toronto's competitive position within the global economy, our long-term prospects and
opportunities, and key policy directions to enhance our future prosperity. In addition to City
Economic Development and Planning staff, Provincial and Federal government sector
specialists will be providing research, advice and other input to this study. This research will
fill some important gaps in our current information base about the City's economy, help
establish benchmarks for comparison with other international cities, and provide quantitative
technical analyses that will assist in evaluating tradeoffs and setting priorities for investing
City resources. Economic Development staff are also analyzing more detailed data on the
Toronto economy (labour force, education, etc.) to support strategy development. These
research materials will be incorporated into the documents prepared to support the
consultation process.
4.Timing:
The bulk of the second round of consultation and the research activities described above will
be ongoing throughout May and June, with refinements and issue/sector specific feedback
discussions during July and August. Draft strategies and policies will be formulated August -
September, to be presented to a half day Feedback/Validation session for the Economic
Development Committee with
business, labour and community representatives in October. The input from the
Feedback/Validation session will be addressed and incorporated into the finalized City of
Toronto Economic Development Strategy, and reported to Committee by the end of this year.
Conclusions:
The strategy process is taking longer than originally anticipated. This is, in part, due to the
extremely aggressive timetable we set for ourselves, unforeseen delays in staffing, and other
demands on our research staff to respond to the day-to-day needs of our business community.
However, it is also, in large, part due to the input we received at the plenary session and
workshops. The business community made it clear that for the strategy to be effective, it was
essential to develop a common vision, not only within the City administration but also
between and among all levels of government. The workshops also made it clear that we
needed more information about Toronto's competitive position in relation to other
international cities.
Economic Development staff are working with staff from the Planning Division and Chief
Administrator's Office to help ensure that the Economic Development Strategy, Official Plan,
Environment Plan and Corporate Plan processes are informed by each other and have a
consistent information base. Economic Development staff have also met with Provincial and
Federal officials to secure financial and technical support for research. Recognizing that
Toronto is the economic engine of Ontario and Canada, three levels of government, as well as
business, labour and community representatives, will be involved in policy formulation. This
approach will not guarantee a perfect alignment of federal, provincial and municipal policies,
but it is an essential step on the way.
While these discussions have extended the completion schedule, they are consistent with our
stated objectives to develop broad based support, create cross jurisdictional teams, and
develop partnerships to facilitate implementation.
Contact Name:
Brenda J. Librecz,Randy McLean,
397-4700392-3397
Christine Raissis,
392-3385
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The Economic Development Committee also had before it the following communications, and
copies thereof are on file in the office of the City Clerk:
-Presentation material from the Commissioner of Economic Development, Culture and
Tourism, titled "Growing Toronto's Economy"; and
-(April 28, 1999) from Councillor Bossons, Ward 23 - Midtown, requesting that the City,
instead of funding Tourism Toronto reluctantly, integrate it into its Economic Development
Strategy.
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The following persons appeared before the Economic Development Committee in connection
with the foregoing matter:
-Bruce McKelvey, Chairman, Toronto Board of Trade; and
-Ted Mallett, Director of Research, Canadian Federation of Independent Business.
