West Hants to reconsider leaving Valley REN
Mayor says council sees value of staying with the economic development network
A partnership on the verge of ending may be getting a one-year reprieve.
West Hants municipal council gave notice of its
partnership intention to leave its with the Valley Regional Enterprise Network (REN) almost a year ago — but as the March 31 departure date nears, councillors may be having a change of heart.
Abraham Zebian, West Hants’ mayor, put a motion
committee forward at the Feb. 8 of the whole meeting requesting council extend the partnership by another year.
“It’s great value for the dollar,” said Zebian in a followup interview. “That was council’s main objective for the past year when we did give notice to leave was to make sure that the value was there. The Valley REN has really come forth and really stepped up to that challenge, and they hit a home run with us.”
At the Feb. 8 meeting, councillors were unanimous in recommending they stay with the Valley REN for another year. That decision
came later in the evening, after the Valley REN CEO Jennifer Tufts and board chairman Paul Dixon presented on the organization’s work to date.
Zebian said council voted to sever ties because it didn’t have a clear vision of how the Valley REN benefitted the communities and businesses within West Hants. He said the Valley REN is now doing a much better job of communicating.
“They were very articulate, clear, to the point on what work they have done in our municipal unit, let alone our
region. region and the Valley It was pretty clear that they’ve been giving us pretty great value for the amount of money that we have put in,” said Zebian.
He said if they vote to stay with the Valley REN for the 2022-23 fiscal year, the cost will be $67,501.40.
Dixon is hopeful West Hants will indeed remain a partner.
“From just the straight dollar per dollar standpoint, every dollar they contribute is matched by the province, as per funding agreements,” Dixon said, noting that allows them to do more as a driver of
development. regional economic
With a myriad of programs already underway to help attract and retain businesses, as well as a special project designed to boost the Annapolis Valley’s tourism appeal, having a cohesive unit supporting the Valley REN helps all municipal units involved.
“There are so many things happening right now that the RENs are critical as a hub of
organizations,” information for many said Dixon.
The Valley REN, which started in 2014, had its ups and downs, Zebian said, but has really hit its stride lately.
“It’s a fantastic board that’s in place now. The leadership or staffing of the Valley REN
is at its all-time best,” said Zebian.
“The initiatives that they are undertaking — for example, the STAR program — are very appealing and very attractive to any unit that is not part of the REN, let alone a part of it.”
publicly-funded The Valley REN is a organization. Partners include Glooscap First Nation, the Municipality of the County of Kings, West Hants Regional Municipality, and the towns of Berwick, Kentville and Middleton.
Both Dixon and Zebian said
considering the Town of Wolfville is rejoining the Valley REN after leaving it in 2019. Doing so would mean the partner municipalities would have to pay less annually.
“If they do, pending budget deliberations, West Hants’ share will go down as will every other unit’s share go down. If that’s the case, we will be in for just under $62,000,” said Zebian, noting
the Valley REN has been doing exceptionally well at leveraging funds over and above municipal contributions.
At the committee meeting, Tufts reported that more than $1 million was leveraged from organizations like ACOA, NSCC and CBDC. That’s something Zebian said helped councillors see the benefit of
another remaining a partner for year.
“It’s fantastic value for every tax dollar that we’ve put in. You can’t get a better deal,” said Zebian.
It’s anticipated West Hants councillors will formally vote on staying with the Valley REN for another year at the Feb. 22 council meeting.
discussions “You never know what happen at council, but it was a unanimous decision to forward it to council, so I’m positive that it will pass as well at council.”