_____________________________________________________________________________________ 1 Terms of Reference – Economic Development Master Plan Purpose and Objectives Introduction These Terms of Reference provide the information required to invite proposals from qualified firms to assist the Municipality of Clare with the preparation of an Economic Development Master Plan. The document also provides the information to help qualified firms prepare and submit high-quality proposals in an efficient manner. This in turn will support sound decision-making by the Municipality in awarding and managing the ensuing project. Background to the Terms of Reference The Municipality of Clare is a Nova Scotia municipality located north of Yarmouth along the coast of the Bay of Fundy. It is the largest Acadian region in Nova Scotia and business is mostly conducted in both of Canada’s official languages. Clare’s attributes include its skilled and bilingual labour pool; competitive labour costs; specialized training to meet specific needs; proximity to deep sea ports and an unrivalled quality of life. The unrivalled quality of life includes superior health care, rich French and English traditions, bilingual population, low cost housing, a virtually crime and pollution free environment, fabulous sunsets and ocean panoramas, excellent schools and a local university. Université Sainte-Anne, the local university, is the only Francophone university in the province of Nova Scotia. They offer a quality education to their Acadian, French and English students. _____________________________________________________________________________________ 2 With approximately 8,300 residents (2011 Census data) 1 in an 850 square kilometre area, Clare’s population decreased by roughly 5.6 per cent in the 2006-2011 period. Population and dwelling counts Clare, MD Digby, CTY Population in 2011 1 8,319 18,036 Population in 2006 1 8,813 18,992 2006 to 2011 population change (%) -5.6 -5.0 Total private dwellings 2 4,478 10,015 Private dwellings occupied by usual residents 3 3,641 7,990 Population density per square kilometre 9.8 7.2 Land area (square km) 852.82 2,515.23 Like many rural areas, the Municipality of Clare’ population decrease can be attributed to youth out-migration coupled with an aging population. This reduction magnifies the economic challenges facing the municipality including job creation and economic diversification. 1 Statistics Canada. 2012. Clare, Nova Scotia (Code 1203001) and Digby, Nova Scotia (Code 1203) (table). Census Profile. 2011 Census. Statistics Canada Catalogue no. 98-316-XWE. Ottawa. Released February 8, 2012. http://www12.statcan.ca/census-recensement/2011/dp-pd/prof/index.cfm?Lang=E (accessed March 6, 2012). _____________________________________________________________________________________ 3 Despite these challenges, the Municipality of Clare strives to be a proactive municipality. Its community infrastructure is varied and plentiful for a small rural municipality. Dozens of community centres/halls exist for use by community members. La Villa Acadienne offers long term care to persons in need of nursing care, and the Clare Health Centre houses several family physicians and specialists as well as community health services; all of these services are important to attract and retain residents and businesses alike. The Municipality’s current (fiscal 2011-12) operating budget is $8.1 million a year, with capital expenditures (includes gas tax funded capital projects) totaling over $1 million over the 2011-2012 period. The location of the Municipality of Clare (located half way between the Town of Digby and the Town of Yarmouth) makes it an attractive hub for services in a rural setting with close proximity to town offering as well as to transportation-related products and services. For employment purposes, Resource-based industries (18 per cent), Manufacturing (15 per cent), Retail trade (13 per cent), Health care and social services (11 per cent) and Educational services (11 per cent) are the five largest sectors. The Municipality has many home-based businesses and in the Municipality of Clare alone, there are more than 150 small and medium-sized enterprises. The largest private sector employers are Comeau’s Sea Foods, A.F. Theriault & Son, Université Sainte-Anne and La Villa Acadienne. Historically, the economy of Clare has been based in fisheries and forestry. Now, there are more residents working in health care and social services than in most resource-based industries (including forestry). Booming and emerging industries include mink, education and culture, and health-based industries. As part of its Economic Development Master Plan, Council wishes to explore ways to support these kinds of transitions and use local government assets and investments to spur innovative development in sectors with the greatest potential for Clare. The Municipality has a number of economic development initiatives under way. For instance, the development of newly acquired land and assets into an industrial park in the Meteghan area is a priority for the Municipality. The Municipality of Clare recently invested a portion of its Federal Gas Tax Funds in a combined heat and power plant located on the site of the former Comeau Lumber Ltd. Lumber mill in Meteghan. The _____________________________________________________________________________________ 4 Municipality then gained ownership of Comeau Lumber Ltd.'s remaining assets at a Municipal Tax Sale. By means of these two separate agreements, the Municipality has secured the site in an effort to safeguard its economic development potential by taking control of the infrastructure needed to eventually produce heat and power through the power plant and motivate new businesses to consider Clare as a location. Situated on Highway 1 in Meteghan, the site covers approximately fifty acres, has access to three-phase power and is already connected to the municipal sewer system. In March 2011, after much discussion and pursuant to its « Clare Energy Master Plan », the Municipality of Clare council decided to purchase the idle one megawatt combined heat and power biomass plant and all associated equipment located on the site of the now bankrupt Comeau Lumber Ltd. In Meteghan. The "Clare Energy Master Plan" focuses on energy reduction for the community and project development suggestions for the innovative use of renewable and green energy solutions. The $ 225,000 purchase was paid for completely with Federal Gas Tax Funds. The acquisition by the Municipality of Clare prevented an auction by the Bankruptcy Trustees. The remaining assets of Comeau Lumber Ltd., which could not be purchased with Federal Gas Tax Funds, including all lands, buildings and equipment became the property of the Municipality of Clare on May 6th via a Municipal Tax Sale where the Municipality of Clare exercised its right to proceed to the recovery of unpaid property taxes through a tax sale, acquiring title to all the assets. The Municipality of Clare is now prepared to make ready the site in order to be able to accommodate tenants. Negotiations can be entertained with any company interested in modernizing and operating the lumber mill on site as well as with other prospective businesses looking to locate on site. _____________________________________________________________________________________ 5 The creation of a plan for the site and power plant is also a priority for the Municipality of Clare. The Municipality ultimately envisions the on-site production of heat and power that could benefit the tenants of this future location aimed at industrial development. As mentioned above, the Municipality of Clare has been working towards a vision of becoming a more sustainable community. In 2006 the Municipality of Clare had a comprehensive plan completed that includes an energy audit of the Municipality and identifies possible renewable energy projects and outlines an implementation plan. It will be important to link the Clare Energy Concept Master Plan with the new Economic Development Master Plan. The same consideration will also have to be given to the Municipality of Clare’s Municipal Planning Strategy (MPS); the result of the need for a fair and efficient means to manage land-use in the Municipality of Clare. Clare was also required by Provincial and Federal governments to develop an Integrated Community Sustainability Plan (ICSP) to access the Gas Tax Transfer funds from the Federal government. The Municipality has integrated the ICSP sustainability requirements with its MPS. The integration of sustainability principles into the MPS has allowed the MPS to act as the ICSP for the Municipality. The Economic Development Master Plan must consider these documents as it aims to add value to the existing plans. In 2012, the Municipality of Clare confirmed its support for the development of an Economic Development Master Plan to guide development across the entire Municipality as well as to serve as the umbrella plan under which specific opportunities and decisions could be assessed. For instance, Council currently has the opportunity to pursue a number of initiatives at its newly acquired industrial park site; decisions about these opportunities (whether to proceed with these initiatives, in what way, in what order and at what cost to the municipality) should be made with due consideration to a broader vision of how the entire Municipality will develop. As a result, Council sees the development of the Plan as the _____________________________________________________________________________________ 6 first step in making these decisions, many of which could be made within the next 12-18 months. The Master Plan must therefore speak to both long-term and short-term development considerations in the Municipality. In addition to outlining possible projects/initiatives it will also be necessary for the consultants to present a process by which the Municipality can move forward and take ownership of its economic development future. A governance model should be suggested with examples of how the structure would benefit the Municipality. The Plan must include a recommendation detailing how the Municipality will organize its economic development activities and provide particulars on a possible enduring structure that will lead sustainable development, engage partners and earn results. All recommendations must take into account the rural perspective as well as the linguistic minority context. Several economic and community economic development organization exist in the community and offer up a multitude of resources and services. These entities are often successful at managing projects, providing project support and partnering on project development. A detailed look at how the Municipality can benefit from these organizations’ efforts is important to assist in determining how we can best take advantage of what is already being done as we plan for the future. An inventory of “who does what” would be useful in project planning and resource allocation. Partnership engagement and furthering these partnerships in the interest of community growth is paramount in the Plan development as it has proven in the past to be one of the strongest drivers of economic development in our Municipality. The consultants will review the existing partnerships between the Municipality and its key community partners. One such great collaboration is that of the Municipality and Université Sainte-Anne. The consultants will examine how this very effective affiliation can be made stronger. Areas to examine will include the development of strategies leading to the retention of students in our community past graduation as a way to counter our decreasing population and to stimulate business development with young entrepreneurs, the identification of possible strategies to ensure these young educated individuals are made to feel as they are part of the entire community. Objectives of the Economic Development Master Plan Process and Outcomes The Economic Development Master Plan process and the outcomes from it are expected to: _____________________________________________________________________________________ 7 • Engage communities of interest in economic development planning process and outcomes. • Help the Municipality, its residents and business operators understand distinctive and unique features and opportunities in Clare and how to capitalize on those features and opportunities for economic development purposes. • Provide a formal long-term (5-10 year) plan for Council and staff to consider, approve and use as a reference for informed, strategic decision-making as issues and opportunities arise. • Provide a plan for the establishment of a structure to lead economic development efforts. • Within the context of the overall plan, provide Council and staff with specific advice and recommendations related to the designated core development area and the role(s)/contribution(s) of specific properties owned by the Municipality. _____________________________________________________________________________________ 8 Plan Area/ Geographic boundaries (include maps) Proponents will be expected to consider the entire Municipality as well as its newly acquired lands (former Comeau Lumber lands) in the Master Plan development process: • Municipality-wide: focused primarily on identification of broad opportunities and constraints, and the strategies by which these can be achieved. This scale considers the Municipality’s geographic location in the region and in relation to neighboring centres, as well as the Municipality’s physical, human, financial and economic attributes and characteristics. • Industrial park land in Meteghan: within the context of the Municipality-wide perspective, the main focus of the Master Plan process will be on specific studies, plans and recommendations outlined in this Request for Proposal. Specifically the target area is 7662 Highway 1 Meteghan NS Scope of the Assignment • A High-level Plan at the Municipality-wide Level: Consideration must be given to both existing and emerging sectors, examples of which are shown in the chart below. These examples are not meant to be prescriptive or to limit consultants’ thinking on what might be possible for the Municipality of Clare. Existing Emerging Fishery Value-added manufacturing/processing Forestry Biomass/Bioenergy Value-added Wood Products Energy _____________________________________________________________________________________ 9 Retail Hospitality and Accommodation Personal services Health and Wellness (includes physician/medical services) Retreat and Relaxation Services Community-focused Recreation Tourism – Resource-based Cultural Tourism, Eco-Tourism, Low-Impact Tourism Camping Experiences for Specific Groups Business Services Knowledge Based Industries Agriculture Value-added manufacturing/processing _____________________________________________________________________________________ 10 Mandatory Standards of Work • The consultants must have the capacity to conduct the work in both official languages (French and English) and the ability to produce the final document in both official languages (French and English) • The consultants will be expected to work from but not be limited to existing plans and information to be provided for their assistance. The consultants will be expected to go beyond traditional forms of economic development (business attraction, business retention and expansion) to reflect contemporary best practices in economic development in the recommended strategies. The ability to do so should be reflected in any submissions. • Where specific components of work so require, the successful bidder will ensure that these components are undertaken or reviewed/signed off by one or more members of the consulting team with appropriate professional credentials and qualifications. Bidders are encouraged to identify these components in their proposals along with the standards which will be applied in each case. Deliverables Expected from the Economic Development Master Plan This project will have multiple deliverables: • An Economic Development Strategy/Plan detailing: • Inventory of Municipality’s major assets viewed from an economic development perspective (may be human, physical, geographic, financial etc.) (ex: transportation infrastructure such as airport in Yarmouth) • Identification of distinctive/unique features and competitive advantages which could be utilized in both product development and marketing strategies on behalf of the Municipality. • Discussion of external trends affecting economic development and implications for the Municipality of Clare. [...]... submissions in response to this RFP • Specific Studies and Plans linked to the Overall Strategy /Plan including: • Inventory of the Municipality of Clare’s businesses, economic sectors, economic development agencies/groups, profile of economic activity in Clare region • Recommendations on strategies to maximize the economic development potential of the Municipality’s investment in Comeau Lumber Ltd as... consultation and input for the Economic Development Master Plan • Feb 6, 2013 : Master Plan draft available for Council , set date for public presentation • Feb 20, 2013: Master Plan presented for approval at Council meeting • Feb 20- March 3, 2013: Timeframe for public presentation of final Master Plan Process for any Modifications to the Project • Modifications to the proposed plan of work may be negotiated... experience with projects of similar scale 20 Demonstrated creativity and innovation in economic development 20 planning (including responsiveness to specific requirements in this Terms of Reference) Previous experience/demonstrated ability to work with smaller rural 20 communities Professional qualifications of principals in key areas (e.g economic 10 development, land use and infrastructure planning, engineering,... of the Economic Development Master Plan project Process Requirements Associated with the Project _ 12 The successful proposal must address the following process requirements: • Review of existing background reports/documents (See list in Appendix A) • Presentation of draft Plan to Council • Two (2) public meetings to be held during the project period, one of. .. relevant experience and professional qualifications/designations highlighted) • Consulting commitment (number of days of work anticipated for any/all human resources to be assigned to the project; identification of project manager and any individuals to be designated as leads for particular aspects of the project) • References for similar projects (3 minimum) A maximum of six project profiles may be included... project period, one of which will be held to allow public input on economic development planning generally (i.e before the draft plan is presented to Council) and a presentation of approved and adopted Plan [See Timelines section for preferred timing of these meetings.] At their own discretion, consultants may choose to recommend use of meeting formats other than a traditional public meeting (for example,... http://www.clarenovascotia.com/municipal/en/energy.cfm o The Municipal Planning Strategy (MPS) for the Municipality of Clare- pdf available or available on-line: http://www.clarenovascotia.com/municipal/en/news.cfm o Municipality of Clare – Report: Community Recreation Planning session (session results ) (April 2009) pdf copy available o Municipality of Clare – Report: Clare Tourism Planning Session 2012 (session results) (Jan... act on, in what order, and over what timeframe • Order -of- magnitude cost estimates for implementing major components of the plan (e.g identified infrastructure investments) Note that the recommended roles/actions, multi-year implementation plan and order -of- magnitude cost estimates must cover the overall Strategy /Plan including the specific studies, plans and recommendations described below Because Council... but not limited to 1) strategies for extracting greater economic benefit for the community from existing assets (physical, human, financial etc.) ,and 2) strategies for capitalizing on demographic changes such as aging of communities (possible development of age-friendly community marketing) • Desired outcomes from implementation of an economic development strategy (e.g employment growth, assessment... to local government, increased awareness of Clare in target markets) • Roles/actions for local government, the private sector, public institutions or NFPs, and any opportunities for effective use of publicprivate partnerships An emphasis on partnership development between the Municipality of Clare and Université Sainte-Anne shall be examined in the economic development context • Recommendation outlining . _____________________________________________________________________________________ 1 Terms of Reference – Economic Development Master Plan Purpose and Objectives Introduction These Terms of Reference provide the. are part of the entire community. Objectives of the Economic Development Master Plan Process and Outcomes The Economic Development Master Plan process