By Scott Robertson, North Bay
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I believe North Bay is at a turning point. The desire for a change of culture in our local leadership can be felt throughout our city. There’s a palpable sense that a new vision along with positive and open leadership is needed to move us forward, be it in the local business community, the arts community, and among average citizens. This was confirmed by the findings in the Baylor Report.
- 56% of the population does not understand the plan for North Bay’s future.
- 46% of the population does not trust city government.
- 15% of the population is optimistic about the future of North Bay.
See: Hope and Optimism comes out of Baylor Focus Firm Study
That said, my wife and I have lived in many cities coast-to-coast as well as overseas, and we’ve never felt more at home than we do here. When we first moved to North Bay, we were blown away by its beautiful waterfront, ski hill, trails, lakes, and parks. That we could actually afford to buy our 100-year-old red brick dream home and start a family only added to our drive to set down roots here.
North Bay is also home to over 300 volunteer-based, community organizations who are dedicated to making our city a compassionate, tight-knit community. Our arts and athletic communities are second to none. We have two fantastic post-secondary institutions, an airport, and other priceless public assets. North Bay offers its citizens a great place to purchase a home and raise a family. Our potential is limitless. But ask yourself, is North Bay achieving its potential? Are we leveraging our community assets to their capacity in order to promote growth and prosperity?
Furthermore, our city was unbelievably lucky to have some of the brightest young minds spend a whole year in 2015/2016 studying North Bay, comparing it to other cities, tracking down successful models, putting our local situation into the context of the global economy and providing a vision for how we can move forward, grow and modernize our city. This is known as the Baylor Report. These are not ‘pie in the sky’ dreamers. They are practical, business-minded, serious young leaders.
What were their recommendations? These world-class MBA candidates presented a vision of a socially-conscious, environmentally-friendly, community-first approach as a fundamental economic principle. They told us that improving our ‘quality of place’ is the best model for supporting our local businesses, attracting new entrepreneurs, building a sense of connectedness, and protecting the taxpayers. They told us that jobs follow people, and not the other way around. Focusing on our city’s livability, they said, was our path to sustainability.
North Bay needs leadership who will implement this vision and stay focused on achieving our potential. Our citizens, community groups, and our local businesses deserve it.
Scott Robertson
