Vancouver is expected to top the podium in terms of economic growth among Canadian cities this year, according to the Conference Board’s Metropolitan Outlook – Winter 2010. “Only four Canadian cities posted economic growth of any kind in 2009 — Halifax, Saint John, Winnipeg and Regina,” said Mario Lefebvre, Director, Centre for Municipal Studies. “Fortunately, Canadian cities are on the rebound in 2010, although the pace of recovery will vary markedly.” This is the one annual Conference Board outlook where forecasts for all 27 CMAs covered in the Metropolitan Outlook are completed at the same time. Four CMAs — Oshawa and Ottawa-Gatineau in Ontario, and Edmonton and Saskatoon in the west — are forecast to post growth of 3.2 per cent in 2010.

The Canadian and American governments reached an agreement on Friday February 5, 2010 on Buy American provisions. The agreement represents an important step forward putting Canadian companies in a better position to benefit from remaining U.S. infrastructure stimulus funding and establishes a mechanism for negotiating further access to U.S. markets. This means Canada is now in a stronger position compared to the other countries that are members of the World Trade Organization’s Government Procurement Agreement.

Falling revenues, the pressure to complete stimulus projects and rising demand for social services will be among the challenges Durham Region must tackle in the coming year, but it’s not all doom and gloom. The extension of Hwy. 407 and GO Transit are among the lights at the end of the proverbial tunnel, Regional Chairman Roger Anderson reports. “I intend to drive my General Motors product from Brock Road in Pickering to Hwy. 35/115 across that 407 sometime in 2013,” he assured during his annual address to the Greater Oshawa Chamber of Commerce, held January 21 at the Oshawa Holiday Inn.

When entering the workforce, it’s always an advantage to have some workplace experience under your belt. For entrepreneurs, taking their small business idea from concept to reality, it is even more important. What better way to see if your idea has what it takes than experiencing the ins and outs of operating a small business for yourself? Durham College’s new Entrepreneurship and Small Business program provides just that for students.

Local entrepreneurs and business people will soon be able to create, test and validate some of the most innovative products in the world without ever having to leave the Greater Oshawa Area. A new Automotive Centre of Excellence (ACE) is being built on the north campus of the University of Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT). This will be the first research, development and innovation centre of its kind in the world, and it will be available to businesses and researchers on a rental basis.

ACE will be a multi-level centre with an area of approximately 13,585 square metres. It will be divided into two distinct sections, a core research facility and an integrated research and training facility. [Photo Left] During a recent media tour of ACE, people stopped to view the outside of the climatic wind tunnel. The wind tunnel is three stories high and is one of the largest and most sophisticated on the planet. [More photos continued on page 2]

Thank you to our Chamber members, the gift bag is full to overflowing! The Greater Oshawa Chamber of Commerce welcomes the opening of the new Oshawa Courthouse and its 450 employees and invites Chamber members to participate in the Welcome Gift Bag Promotion. If you wish to introduce and promote your business to the new employees, you can do so by providing promotional material to insert into the gift bag. NOTE: The gift bag is now full and no additional gifts can be accepted.

The Ontario Chamber of Commerce (OCC) needs your help to determine interest level in a Trade Mission to India. The OCC through the Export Market Access (EMA) program provides funding to help companies expand into new and consolidate existing export markets. In addition, the program also provides financial support to companies for export focused missions to overseas markets. In this regard, we are trying to gauge the level of interest of our chamber network/member companies for an OCC led mission to India in early spring. Please take a few moments to complete the survey. Responses are requested by Wednesday January 27th, 2010.

February 28, 2010 is the deadline for the 2009 Tax Relief Applications for Ontario Commercial/Industrial Properties Under the Municipal Act, 2001, and the City of Toronto Act, 2006, commercial and industrial property owners are entitled to tax rebates for vacant, renovated or demolished space. To obtain the benefit for the 2009 tax year, a taxpayer or representative of the taxpayer must make application to the municipality no later than February 28, 2010. Click here for details.