What it’s all about

Just so we are clear—the amount of County taxpayer money at stake in the economic development department before eight councillors hacked at it was just under one per cent of the total amount the County will spend this year. One per cent.

By slashing 20 per cent of this single budget—these eight councillors, in this one ill-conceived move, managed to deliver less than a quarter of a percentage point difference in the overall budget. That’s it.

But this was never about the money.

Nor was it about achievement. The economy of Prince Edward County is a far richer, more dynamic and prosperous engine than it was a decade ago. No one can reasonably dispute this fact. Entire categories of industry have risen out of the ground, creating jobs, purchasing goods, employing trades and paying taxes under Dan Taylor’s watch. It has been a decade of unprecedented growth and development in this local economy. It is a performance that is contrasted sharply in every other rural eastern community. The County is the envy of every municipality working to improve the lives of its citizens across the country.

One local winemaker, upon learning of the economic development officer’s imminent departure, counted 25 businesses he patronizes in Wellington alone. Richard Johnston of By Chadsey’s Cairns Winery is working on a tally of businesses with whom he trades in the County and the region.

His is but one of 30 some wineries that have emerged in the last decade. It’s a sector generating revenue measured in the tens of millions of dollars, much of it re-circulated into the local economy—a sector that largely did not exist a decade ago.

Similar tales of success can be told in culture, food and tourism.

These folks didn’t invest their life savings because of Dan Taylor, but rather because of a story—the story of Prince Edward County. As an experienced ad man he understood intuitively that smart money flows toward a good story—one of promise, possibility and hope. In Prince Edward County he found all the ingredients—all he had to do was compose it and tell the story to world as loudly as he could.

It worked. Folks made their way to the County and they invested their money and built businesses that weren’t here before. So it cannot be said that Dan Taylor didn’t do his job. So what was this really about? Why did eight folks on council feel it was necessary to functionally neuter the outgoing economic development officer—compelling him to leave?

Some just didn’t like him. They prefer their municipal staff compliant and submissive. Taylor is neither. He explained his strategy as best he could. He pointed to abundant results—a burgeoning tax base, massive investment, a higher yield in the County’s tourist business. It should have been enough.

Some folks never understood why car manufacturers or other smokestack industries weren’t coming to the County. They believe if only Honda or Magna were asked, they might overlook the County’s obvious lack of transportation infrastructure, available skilled workforce and support industries and invest here. It is a fantasy—but one that some on council continue to cling to. No amount of studies or research Taylor produced would convince them the County’s opportunities lay elsewhere.

Others just don’t like how the County has turned out. They try to convince themselves that the County was better off before investment arrived. They churlishly believe the prosperity and wealth being generated in this vibrant and healthy economy is their birthright—that newcomers are thriving on the backs of those whose families have lived here for generations.

It is true that not everyone is participating in the economic growth of this community—but it is wrong to believe that the initiative and success of some is holding others back. There is simply no evidence of this.

Kathy Kennedy, executive director of Taste the County, is one of the smartest and most clear-minded folks I know. She figures the challenge some folks have had with economic development over the past decade has its roots in the amalgamation of the County. She contends that the broader community has never been allowed to discuss what economic development ought to look like. She sees this moment as an opportunity to fix this omission.

Let’s hope she is right—for investment can flow out as fast as it flows in.

rick@wellingtontimes.ca