Report for Community Services Committee August 18, 2003 Meeting

Report for Community Services Committee August 18, 2003 Meeting

Community Services Advisory Board: Integrating Visions for Social Well-Being and Economic Prosperity

Recommendation:
That City Council combines its Vision for Social Well-Being and Quality of Life and Vision for Economic Prosperity for a single, integrated vision for the City of Edmonton.

Report Summary

  • Under Bylaw 11926 Section 1.2, the Community Services Advisory Board “is established by Council in accordance with the Family and Community Support Services Act, and the Municipal Government Act.” The responsibilities of the Board are “to recommend grant funding allocations to Council and to have a key role in developing a long-term plan for community services in Edmonton.”
  • Community Services Advisory Board (CSAB) proposes that the City’s Vision for Social Well-Being and Quality of Life and the Vision for Economic Prosperity be integrated into one vision statement. Currently, the two statements vie for priority since they have different focuses and seemingly compete. However, they are not mutually exclusive. Combining the two visions would present a stronger image of what Edmonton stands for.
  • This report presents the rationale for combining the two visions and recommends a strategy to do so.

Report

The mandate of City Council is to ensure that its two visions are achieved. One vision is a City committed to the social well-being and quality of life of individuals, families and communities. The other vision focuses on economic prosperity where businesses want to locate and expand, and where people choose to live, learn, work and play.

Although the two visions were adopted by two different City Councils and seem to focus on different objectives, they are elements of one goal: a City of social and economic well-being.

Economic Development Edmonton (EDE) provides a strong rationale for the need for an integral connection between social and economic well-being. EDE identifies three dimensions to the building blocks of economic performance: prosperity (growth in the areas of jobs, income, wage and population); disparity (reduction of poverty, unemployment and homelessness); and sustainability (ability to preserve air, water and land, and reduce pollution and wastes).

Combining the two visions would create an emphasis on local economic development (or sustainable development). According to Bryant and Preston, “The objective of economic development is to influence the processes affecting the growth, decline and restructuring of economic activity to meet communities’ needs more effectively. The purpose of local economic development is to provide a rationale for local economic development that is complementary to government involvement.”

Local economic development recognizes that objectives other than just economic ones are important in a community. Increasing the local tax base and expanding employment opportunities are usually considered to be the key goals in economic development. However, objectives such as quality of life, environmental quality, local autonomy, a more equitable distribution of wealth, and access to housing are also legitimate concerns of economic development. At the heart of local economic development is the idea that there is a need for a balance between economic activity and social equity.

The connection of social and economic factors is also supported by Rosabeth Moss Kanter, who suggests that communities need both “magnets” (economic components) and “glue” (social networks and programs to solve problems, and promote the social and economic well-being of all of their members). She suggests that it is not possible to create the magnets unless time and resources are put in to securing the glue.

This report has presented a strong case for the connection between social well-being and economic prosperity. By combining the two visions, and therefore integrating strategies for achieving them, the dilemma of competing images of what Edmonton stands for is removed.

CSAB suggests three possible strategies to undertake combining the visions:

1.Contract a consultant to seek input from stakeholders and prepare a new draft vision to present to Council. Extensive public input was gathered when the two visions were initially designed, and another consultation process should not now be necessary.

2.Contract a consultant to review the current visions (and relevant reference material) to merge the two visions and present a draft to Council. There is a risk that a consultant might misinterpret the intent of the original visions and Council’s approach to meeting the expectations of Edmontonians.

3.Contract a consultant to work with Council in developing the new vision. This strategy would ensure that Council is involved in drafting the new vision from the outset and Councillors will represent citizen’s wishes.

  • CSAB supports the third strategy.

Budget / Financial Implications

Costs will depend on the extent of the facilitated session with Council and the cost of writing the new vision.

Justification of Recommendation

There should be one identifiable vision for the City of Edmonton. The development of a single, strong vision would remove the dilemma of competing images for which Edmonton stands.

Background Information Attached

  1. Recommendation to Combine City Council’s Vision for Social Well-Being with City Council’s Vision for Economic Prosperity

Background Information Available on Request

  1. Edmonton City Council’s Vision for Economic Prosperity
  2. Edmonton City Council’s Vision for Social Well-Being
  3. Plan Edmonton

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Attachment 1

Recommendation to Combine City Council’s Vision for Social Well-Being with City Council’s Vision for Economic Prosperity

Recommendation to Combine

City Council’s Vision for Social Well-Being

with

City Council’s Vision for Economic Prosperity

(approved by Community Services Advisory Board – April 24, 2003)

Edmonton City Council has a “Vision for Social Well-Being and Quality of Life” that advocates for:

  1. A city committed to the social well-being and quality of life of individuals, families and communities.
  1. A city where individuals, families, organizations, communities, business and governments together build a working, caring, safe and clean community.

The City of Edmonton proposes to lead by seeking opportunities to collaborate with a variety of partners; offering effective programs, facilities and services to all citizens; providing information; championing Edmonton’s economic prosperity; maintaining the natural environment; advocating for Edmontonians; and celebrating accomplishments.

Edmonton City Council’s “Vision for Economic Prosperity” sees the City as:

1.An international smart city with a vibrant economy.

2.A capital city where businesses want to locate and expand.

3.A culturally diverse city where people choose to live, learn, work and play.

The mandate of City Council includes promoting Edmonton; leading in the development of key relationships; ensuring efficient, cost effective and accessible services; and providing a physical and human infrastructure that contributes to economic development and quality of life.

The Community Services Advisory Board (CSAB) proposes that the Vision for Social Well-Being and Quality of Life be integrated with the Vision for Economic Prosperity.

Economic Development Edmonton provides a strong rationale for the need for an integral connection between social and economic well-being. They identify three dimensions to the building blocks of economic performance. They include: prosperity (growth in the areas of jobs, income, wage and population), disparity (reduction of poverty, unemployment and homelessness) and sustainability (ability to preserve air, water and land and reduce pollution and waste).

Combining the two visions would create an emphasis on local economic development (or sustainable development). According to Bryant and Preston, “The objective of economic development is to influence the processes affecting the growth, decline and restructuring of economic activity to meet communities’ needs more effectively. The purpose of local economic development is to provide a rationale for local economic development that is complementary to government involvement.”

Local economic development has the ability to create and retain jobs, encourage investment, and expand the tax base. It is a means toward community development in that it has three interrelated core characteristics: the development of people, the development of organizations, and institutional development to work together better.

Local economic development recognizes that objectives other than economic ones are important in a community. Increasing the local tax base and expanding employment opportunities are usually considered to be the key goals in economic development. However, objectives such as quality of life, environmental quality, local autonomy, a more equitable distribution of wealth, and access to housing are also legitimate concerns of economic development. At the heart of local economic development is the idea that there is a need for a balance between economic activity and social equity.

The connection of social and economic factors is also supported by Rosabeth Moss Kanter, who suggests that communities need both “magnets” (economic components) and “glue (social networks and programs to solve problems, and promote the social and economic well-being of all of their members). She suggests that it is not possible to create the magnets unless time and resources are put in to securing the glue.

Finally, if the two visions were to be combined, Edmonton would strengthen its leadership in the Calgary-Edmonton corridor. According to a report in the latest edition of “TD Economics”, there are a number of challenges facing the City of Edmonton as part of the Calgary-Edmonton corridor. These challenges include economic issues such as too much reliance on the demand and supply of crude oil and natural gas; labour shortages; and the effect of “sizzling growth” on the Region’s infrastructure. These issues fall under the economics or “magnets” example from Moss Kanter. In addition, the TD report suggests that Edmonton faces a number of social or “glue” issues, such as not enough Alberta students moving on to higher education; urban sprawl; and slow growth in earnings for low income people (combined with a net loss in purchasing power due to sharp increases in housing costs).

The TD Economics report recommends that all orders of government and the private sector must work together to maintain the City of Edmonton, and the Calgary-Edmonton corridor’s high level of prosperity. Recommendations fall into both the economic (magnet) and social (glue) categories.

CSAB proposes that one vision be developed for the City of Edmonton which would combine the Economic and Social visions.

REFERENCES

“Greater Edmonton Competitiveness Strategy”, Economic Development Edmonton.

“A Framework for Local Initiatives in Economic Development”; Christopher Bryant and Richard Preston; University of Waterloo.

“World Class: Thriving Locally in the Global Economy”; Rosabeth Moss Kanter; Harvard Business School.

“The Calgary-Edmonton Corridor, Take Action Now to Ensure Tiger’s Roar Doesn’t Fade”; TD Economics Report; TD Bank Financial Group.

“CED, Community Futures, and EIC”; Gordon Borgstrom; Western Economic Development, HRDC.

“Community Economic Development and Strategic Planning”; School of Regional Planning and Development; University of Guelph.

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