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Jü'!È BOVJMANVIVLEUBRAR 1105 163 Church Stree ^ ^ BowmanviVe, iwwmuer ZJ $1.00 GST Included Wednesday June 9, 2004 1 "I'i iiii!' 1 iiiii'HSI Orono Town Hall Serving Kendal , Kirby, Leskard, Newcastle. Newtonville, Orono, Starkville and Tyrone since 1937 Board of Trade identifies barriers to growth SRS won leïsoo lb. pulling class with his 1949 Case Tractor at the Antique Tractor show held at DocVille this past weekend. Restrictions for drive-through establishments - .. architectural Quality are to be Committee of Council approved a report in principle principle Monday night that would restrict locations for future drive-through establishments. establishments. As King Street is the primary primary commercial street for the Bowmanville and Newcastle Newcastle communities, it should provide a high quality urban environment tor pedestrians, according to the Planning Department report before Committee Monday. Drive-through facilities are typically automobile focused, requiring large areas for drive-through queue lines, and are not in keeping with the pedestrian oriented design principles. The proposed 'drive- through prohibited area' in Newcastle extends from just west of Baldwin Street easterly easterly to two lots past Brookhouse Drive. Newcastle Realtor Masood Vatandoust welcomes the restrictions. "The downtown core as it is now is hQt built for drive-throughs,' Vatandoust Vatandoust told the Orono Times reporter Tuesday morning. The policies of the Newcastle Village Main Central Area Secondary Plan requires development in this area to be compatible with the existing historic downtown areas. "Buildings of high architectural quality are to be located close to the street with provisions for walkways, pedestrian lighting, seating and enhanced streetscapes to encourage social interaction," according to the Plan. As drive-through facilities are typically designed to focus on the automobile rather than the pedestrian, prohibiting such establishments would meet the objectives of the Village Main Central Area Plan. The Report was unanimous unanimous adopted by Committee of Council Monday morning, and will be before full council next Monday night for a final decision. The business climate in Clarington is not as healthy as is it could be according to a recent report issued by the Clarington Board of Trade. The Board of Trade (BoT) was formed in 1998 by the Municipality and is contracted to perform . its economic development function. Through it's recently completed completed Business Retention and Expansion program the BoT have identified some key stumbling blocks to doing business in the Municipality. In April of last year the BoT conducted extensive interviews with 84 of the approximately 1300 businesses businesses operating in the Municipality. Municipality. The survey identified concerns and opportunities of local companies so that action could be taken to respond to their needs or development opportunities. On the question of 'Level of satisfaction with services provided by the community. 23 per cent of respondents said they were somewhat satisfied satisfied with local planning, zoning and building permit services. The local government received a rating of 'good' from 32 per cent of survey respondents. Forty five per cent rated the BoT to be of good value. As Ms. Suzanne McCrim- mon, Business Development Manager of the Clarington BoT told councillors last Monday night, when she presented presented the survey results to them, The BoT will partner with the Municipal Planning Department and concerned businesses to review specific areas of concern and determine determine solutions. "Simplifying and quickening the pace of approvals is one need," stated McCrimmon in her presentation. presentation. The BoT will also ensure that guidance is proved to maintain a quality workforce that will give Clarington a competitive advantage. "Achieving this will include the support of local high schools to provide an education education that meets the requirements requirements of the workforce, McCrimmon stated, ensuring that a skilled trades workforce is available to meet future needs. In the five year period from 1996 to 2001, Clarington experienced a 26 per cent employment growth, having 16,000 jobs available in the community in 2001. The largest increases in employment employment in that five year period came in the lumber and building building material sector, women's clothing second, other trade work third, with wholesale and motor vehicles coming in at fourth place. Through the process they discovered Clarington's business business strengths lie in tourism, light industrial, agriculture and business service industry sectors. Small and medium size businesses are the heart beat of Clarington's strength with 41 per cent of the businesses businesses surveyed having less than nine employees. Of the participants in the Business Retention and Expansion (BR&E) survey, 34 per cent have been in business for three to ten years. , 25 per cent for 10 - 25 years and 23 per cent over 35 years. "This indicates a well established business base, but with few new start ups in the last three years," said McCrim-mion. Some key advantages to operating businesses in Clarington as indicated by the survey were: geographic location location to 401 corridor, 80 km distance from Downtown Toronto, access to airports, railways and docks, access to BARRIERS see page 3