In this edition:
- Welland Canal mayors issue joint statement on Seaway strike
- Grain farmers hit by seaway strike, as management asks labour board for exception
- Niagara Region to open new temporary, housing focused shelter in St. Catharines
- Niagara College Food and Beverage Innovation Centre receives funding support to help businesses develop and market beverages
- Niagara Region welcomes Queen’s Park plans to rollback urban boundary changes
- University of Niagara Falls Canada accepting applications for first term
- Premiers’ ask for rate hold put Bank of Canada’s independence at risk: Macklem
- Focus on Finance & Economy
Welland Canal mayors issue joint statement on Seaway strike
The Mayors of the Welland Canal issued a joint call today pushing for both sides of the St. Lawrence Seaway labour disruption to get back to the bargaining table, and reiterated the vital need for the Seaway to maintain operations. With the visible imagery of ships lining up in front of the canal at both ends, the ramifications of the shutdown are clear to the Mayors of Port Colborne, Welland, Thorold and St. Catharines.
The Seaway is one of the most vital conduits for trade throughout North America, supporting over $12 billion in economic activity annually. The potential impacts of a strike on the economy, jobs, and the supply chain highlight the importance of marine shipping on the Great Lakes – St. Lawrence Seaway, and the need to resolve the dispute as quickly as possible.
Grain farmers hit by seaway strike, as management asks labour board for exception
Grain farmers, steelmakers and fertilizer shippers are all feeling the squeeze from a strike by St. Lawrence Seaway workers.
The job action by 361 Unifor members at 13 of the 15 locks along the key trade corridor kicked off Sunday, shutting it down immediately.
Crosby Devitt, who heads the Grain Farmers of Ontario, says the majority of crops yielded by the 28,000 producers he represents are exported, as farmers wrap up the soybean harvest and begin to reap corn.
Devitt says there is no export alternative to the seaway, which runs between Lake Erie and Montreal and carried $16.7 billion worth of cargo last year — nearly half of it grain and iron ore.
Niagara Region to open new temporary, housing focused shelter in St. Catharines
Niagara Region announced today that it is establishing a temporary, housing focused, 50-bed modular shelter at 29 Riordon St.
Operational in early 2024, the site will remain open for approximately two years while a permanent, year-round shelter is established, in a location yet to be determined. Modular housing units will provide a unique and rapid solution that allows the Region to advance recommendations made in a recent shelter capacity review.
Niagara College Food and Beverage Innovation Centre receives funding support to help businesses develop and market beverages
Niagara College is excited to share that the Food & Beverage Innovation Centre (FBIC) will receive funding of up to $50,000 from the National Research Council of Canada Industrial Research Assistance Program (NRC IRAP).
This support will help FBIC deliver services to small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to de-risk innovation in new beverage product development, which includes prototyping, food safety guidance, testing and producing marketable products at FBIC’s new Beverage Research & Development Pilot Processing Facility.
Niagara Region welcomes Queen’s Park plans to rollback urban boundary changes
While awaiting details, Niagara Region Chair Jim Bradley says he welcomes proposed provincial legislation that would reverse changes made to the municipality’s official plan.
Niagara Region was one of a dozen Ontario municipalities identified Monday by Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Paul Calandra that will be impacted by legislation he intends to introduce that would roll back changes to official plans that were imposed by the province toward having 1.5 million more homes built in Ontario over the next decade.
University of Niagara Falls Canada accepting applications for first term
The private company behind the new University of Niagara Falls Canada is preparing to welcome its first cohort of students in January.
Additionally, while the university is getting ready for the start of classes, it and city officials have been busy promoting the education entity overseas.
Niagara Falls Mayor Jim Diodati, with city chief administrative officer Jason Burgess and business development director Serge Felicetti, travelled to Thailand at GUS’s expense earlier this month to attend an education summit to spread the word about the university to international agents for universities and higher educational institutions from around the globe.
Premiers’ ask for rate hold put Bank of Canada’s independence at risk: Macklem
Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem warned premiers who publicly asked the central bank to not raise interest rates last month that their requests could undermine the institution’s independence.
The premiers of Ontario, British Columbia and Newfoundland and Labrador wrote to Macklem ahead of the Bank of Canada’s Sept. 6 rate decision, outlining concerns about the effects of higher rates on their residents and asking the central bank not to raise its key rate further.
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Focus on Finance and Economy
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Through the Daily Updates, the GNCC aims to deliver important business news in a timely manner. We disseminate all news and information we feel will be important to businesses. Inclusion in the Daily Update is not an endorsement by the GNCC.
