Region surveys new Niagarans
The regional municipality wants to know what’s luring people to Niagara.
It has embarked on an extensive project to gather information about the area’s draw in hopes of playing off those strengths to create more growth, while also addressing any weaknesses identified as a result.
The $41,700 undertaking, facilitated by Markham-based realty firm PMA Brethour, includes a homeowner survey, stakeholder meetings, focus groups with new residents, and market surveys and one-on-one discussions with home builders and developers.
The project also includes a new home market review, which will compare Niagara against competitors in terms of product offering, pricing, property taxes, development charges, and zoning and bylaw restrictions. The review will result in a series of detailed recommendations to help Niagara attract builders and new home buyers to the region.
The region, Regional Chairman Alan Caslin said, has lagged behind other southern Ontario communities in terms of growth, but has recently begun see some uptake, “and we really want to know why.”
That growth has come in the form of a housing boom, but “we’re also seeing commercial and industrial (sectors) starting to ask a lot of questions around Niagara,” Caslin said, “no doubt in part because of the transportation plan we’ve put in place with buses, trains and airplanes. I think right now what you’re seeing is people appreciating that there’s good value in Niagara.”
To get to the bottom of the residential draw, a homeowner survey, targeting people who have recently moved to the region, was sent to about 2,500 homes earlier this month.
The goal is to try and develop a profile of the type of people who are moving to Niagara, including demographic information such as age, family size, profession, education and income, as well as the community they’re moving from, said Region communications specialist Daryl Barnhart.
The survey also asks questions about various forms of media people use to help determine the best avenues for regional advertisement, he said.
Surveys are also being conducted with home builders to determine why they chose to develop in Niagara, what is working for them and what is not. Conversations are also being had with developers who are not currently building in the area in order to find out why, Barnhart said.
The plan is to have a report and presentation brought forward to regional council outlining the results of the project before the end of the year. Development of a marketing strategy is to begin in 2017.
“It’s really good to know why you’re being successful and what matters to people, so we can promote those elements that really make sense,” Caslin said.
The homeowner survey is available online at niagararegion.ca/ home-survey.