Business confidence high, Penticton survey suggests

Over half of Penticton businesses say they are growing, but housing and labour issues still need to be addressed in order to maintain momentum, according to survey results released Wednesday.

Undertaken by the City of Penticton, the business climate survey included face-toface interviews with 101 local firms. It found the local economy is strong and expected to grow.

Fifty-five per cent of businesses surveyed plan to expand in the next year, with just seven per cent seeing potential downsizing.

Patio Burger and Ice Cream Co. owner Gordon Ferguson recently expanded his business, adding a year-round location on Barnes Street on top of the seasonal, beachside restaurant on Lakeshore Drive.

“The business climate from my perspective certainly has been positive and growing for the last few years,” Ferguson said.

Policing, labour supply and housing were frequently mentioned as concerns by businesses surveyed, and Ferguson is indeed feeling the pressure to retain workers on a year-round basis.

“One of the reasons why I added a second location (is) not just for good business sense, but it also keeps a few of my staff from leaving Penticton for the winter and finding employment elsewhere,” Ferguson said.

Mayor Andrew Jakubeit didn’t find any real surprises in the survey results, but said it’s good to have the data and opinions to back up notions of economic growth.

“It really helps to validate what was sort of anecdotally common knowledge or what we thought was happening or not happening. It really makes it statistically correct or accurate in terms of the findings,” Jakubeit said.

Another concern heard from many businesses was inconsistent messaging, or “changing of goalposts” when it came to business licensing processes.