Think tank points out the good, the bad and the ugly

Fourteen expatriate North Bayites have given Vic Fedeli the good, the bad and the ugly about the city, the mayor says.

The 14 participated in a think tank organized by Fedeli and held Friday at the Clarion Resort-Pinewood Park.

Fedeli said the participants, who came back to North Bay from Quebec City, Toronto, Montreal and Atlanta, work in the mining, consulting, pharmaceuticals and high tech industries.

“They were coming back anyway to visit family and friends here, so they were more than happy to get together and talk about what they do, about what industry they’re in, what contacts they have and what they can push our way in terms of prospective business moves or expansions,” Fedeli said.

Low hanging fruit
The meeting didn’t have any formal agenda, Fedeli said.

“I started off by giving them a half hour overview and bringing them up to date about where we are today in terms of some development, the plans for the waterfront and the industrial park, as well as talking about our new airport, the Canadore College aviation campus, and the telerobotic surgeries going on at the hospital,” Fedeli said.

Then the group talked about low hanging fruit, although not referring to apples and pears.

“We were talking about what business opportunities might be readily available for North Bay in terms of expansions or branch plants,” Fedeli said.

The group realized there was nothing quickly attainable at the moment, Fedeli said, “but at the same time you don’t go to a trade show and expect to come home with a deal, but it’s a way to get the ball rolling.”

Instant appeal
The underground SAGE facility in North Bay was also discussed, Fedeli said.

“It had an instant appeal for everybody because of the possibilities not only for data storage, but data retrieving and archiving as well as the storage of solid information material.”

Fedeli said he also asked the group about their impressions of North Bay.

“They told me they were excited about the new direction the city is going in and the new spirit of optimism here. At the same time they were concerned about the lack of physicians here and said that would be detrimental in trying to attract new industry,” Fedeli said.

“And they also said the city looks tired and rough around the edges. So that was their good, bad and ugly about North Bay.”

No jobs for them
At the same time the think tank participants recommended more sessions be held in the future.

Fedeli also said more think tanks will be held and he’d be posting the minutes from them on the North Bay city web site.

“These people like North Bay, like the quality of life here, the low crime rate, and would love to raise their families here,” Fedeli said.

“The thing that’s preventing them from doing that, they tell, is that there would be no jobs for them here. And that’s something we must change.”