Regional Economic Development News

March 10, 2010 Source: Jeff Outhit, The Record WATERLOO REGION — As the economy faltered, this region added only 3,100 residents last year, the smallest increase in population since 1996. Planners had forecast the region would add 6,100 residents. On average, the community has been adding almost 8,000 residents a year over the Read More...

March 10, 2010 Source: Terry Pender, The Record WATERLOO REGION — Statistics Canada says the number of visible minorities living in this region will double by 2031. And people who work with and study immigrants say this region has work to do when it comes to helping immigrant settle, find work and integrate. The Statistics Read More...

March 9, 2010 Source: Exchange Morning Post Waterloo – Following a huge success last year, Lutherwood is hosting its second annual job fair to help connect approximately 40 Waterloo Region employers that are hiring with an anticipated 1,000 job-seekers. Kitchener Memorial Auditorium Subscriber’s Lounge 400 East Avenue Wednesday March 10, 2010 2:00 – 6:00 pm “Our local labour market Read More...

March 04, 2010 Source: Chuck Howitt, The Record WATERLOO REGION — The company has gone out of its way to hire immigrants as interns and kept some of them on as permanent staff. Staff members have acted as mentors to other immigrants during the difficult early months in a new country. Other employees Read More...

March 03, 2010 Source: Brent Davis, The Record WATERLOO — The province will invest nearly million in software developer Open Text as the high-tech firm creates hundreds of new jobs in Ontario over the next five years. The Waterloo-based company plans to spend a total of 5 million over the next five Read More...

March 3, 2010 Source: Kitchener-Waterloo Real Estate Board While Canada’s athletes were racing for Olympic Gold; Waterloo region’s homebuyers were racing to buy real estate. REALTORS® of the Kitchener-Waterloo Real Estate Board (KWREB) traded 553 homes in February through the Multiple Listing System (MLS®) for a total value of 3,120,645, marking a 31.7 Read More...

March 02, 2010 Source: Melinda Dalton, The Record WATERLOO REGION — The local tourism board could soon be taking a lead role in an ambitious plan to create distinct tourism regions and boost Ontario’s visitor dollars. The Waterloo Regional Tourism Marketing Corporation, with the endorsement of 29 surrounding municipalities, has applied to be Read More...

March 02, 2010 Source: Exchange Morning Post WATERLOO – Capacity Waterloo Region (CWR), a five-year pilot project to build an enabling environment that brings resources from all sectors together to support the people that build lasting social change, announced today that Cathy Brothers has officially joined the project as its first-ever Executive Director Read More...

March 02, 2010 Source: Rose Simone, The Record KITCHENER – It’s official. The new centre that is being created to foster the development of the digital media economy in Waterloo Region will make its home in the redeveloped historic Lang Tannery building in downtown Kitchener. After months of speculation the centre would be a Read More...

March 1, 2010 Source: Exchange Morning Post Ontario is helping researchers in Waterloo Region make new discoveries that will improve the lives of people around the world while building our economy at home. The province is investing ,826,487 to support 6 leading-edge research projects at the University of Waterloo. The funding comes Read More...

March 1, 2010 Source: Exchange Morning Post TORONTO - Covington Capital Corporation ("Covington") is pleased to announce the completion of a CDN.5 million investment in Waterloo-based Aimetis Corp. ("Aimetis", the "Company") as part of a total financing round of million. Established in 2003, Aimetis is a provider of network video surveillance technologies designed Read More...

March 1, 2010 Source: PRNewswire ONTARIO, Canada, Canadian Solar Inc. ("the Company," "Canadian Solar" or "we") (Nasdaq: CSIQ) today announced its headquarters, located at 650 Riverbend Dr., is home to Kitchener's first Ontario Power Authority (OPA) approved microFIT (Feed-In-Tariff) solar installation. The 3.2 kW DC Canadian Solar system was installed on Canada's first Read More...

February 24, 2010 Source: Chuck Howitt, The Record WATERLOO REGION — In what will be a first for Waterloo Region, Canada’s Technology Triangle is organizing a trade mission of local business and institutional representatives to China in May. While local company owners and business development officials have travelled individually to China in the Read More...

February 23, 2010 Source: Terry Pender, The Record KITCHENER — City councillors reached an important milestone Monday in their decade-long effort to redevelop a strategic parcel of land next to City Hall. During a closed-door meeting councillors gave their final authorization to staff for an agreement between the City of Kitchener and Brampton-based Read More...

February 18, 2010 Source: Agfa Agfa HealthCare announces new facility to support research & development, commercialization of healthcare technology and drive job creation Agfa HealthCare, a leading provider of IT-enabled clinical workflow and diagnostic imaging solutions, today announced construction of a the new global Agfa HealthCare Research & Development facility in the Research and Read More...

February 17, 2010 Source: 570News Two local manufacturing companies will split over two million dollars in loans from Ottawa to create almost 100 new jobs. Grand River Foods Ltd. in Cambridge gets over 1.1 million to get new equipment for a more efficient processing operation, and add 20 new permanent full-time jobs. Bend All Automotive in Read More...

February 8, 2010 Source: 570News Another positive sign on the local home construction beat. Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation has released the figures for January housing starts in Waterloo Region. CMHC reports construction was started on 221 homes, up from 90 during the same month last year. It says starts were up right across the board, Read More...

February 5, 2010 Source: IGLOO We have great news to share with you - IGLOO Software, won the Economic Developers Council of Ontario Award for Best New Website for the Manufacturing Innovation Network (MIN). The MIN is a collaborative hub focused on knowledge sharing and creating new growth clusters. Read more Read More...

January 28, 2010 Source: The Record WATERLOO REGION – Waterloo Region’s economy is poised for a big rebound this year, says the Conference Board of Canada. The local economy is expected to grow 3.3 per cent this year after and an average of 4.2 per cent from 2011 to 2014, the board said Read More...

January 27, 2010 Source: 570 News A new report predicts Waterloo Region will be third on the list of metropolitan areas in Canada that will experience the most growth this year. The Conference Board of Canada says the local economy is expected to grow 3.3 per cent this year. Companies such as Toyota and Com Read More...

January 20, 2010 Source: Intelligent Community Forum (ICF) Top Seven are Finalists in the Prestigious Intelligent Community of the Year Award Process The Intelligent Community Forum named its 2010 Top Seven Intelligent Communities of the Year today at a luncheon ceremony taking place at PTC'10 in Honolulu, Hawaii, USA (13:30 HAST, 18:30 EST, Read More...

Important Message From Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada Dear Electric\/Electronic Industry Colleagues, Please find below an important message for your attention and response concerning the EU’s recast of its RoHS (Restriction on Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment) Directive. We would appreciate your response by January 31, 2010. Summary: Recently, our Read More...

January 13, 2010 Source: The Conference Board of Canada Calgary, Waterloo, Ottawa, Vancouver, St. John’s and Richmond Hill have what migrants are looking for when choosing where to locate, according to the Conference Board’s second report assessing the attractiveness of Canadian cities. “Cities that fail to attract new people will struggle to stay Read More...

Date: January 12 , 2010 Source: CNW Group TORONTO - Canada Bread Company, Limited (TSX:CBY) today announced it will invest approximately 0 million in its Fresh Bakery operations to construct a new 370,000 square foot bakery facility in southwestern Ontario. The investment reinforces the Company's strategy of establishing competitive large scale facilities that provide Read More...

January 11, 2010 Source: The Waterloo Region Record WATERLOO REGION – Home builders in Waterloo Region ended 2009 on a strong note with housing starts rising for the third month in a row in December. Builders poured foundations for 195 housing units in the final month of last year, up from 129 in December Read More...

January 08, 2010 Source: The Waterloo Region Record WATERLOO — After nearly three years at the helm of the Accelerator Centre, Tom Corr is leaving to become president and chief executive officer of the Ontario Centres of Excellence. He assumes his new duties on March 1, replacing Mark Romoff who retired in September. Corr Read More...

January 07, 2010 Source: The Waterloo Region Record KITCHENER – Canada’s Technology Triangle Inc. is moving its offices to downtown Kitchener effective Feb. 1. The economic development organization has been housed in the Centre for International Governance Innovation building on Erb Street in Waterloo. But the soon-to-open Balsillie School of International Affairs will Read More...

January 07, 2010 Source: Rose Simone, The Waterloo Region Record WATERLOO — It started out as a year of doom and gloom, but 2009 turned into a banner year for the housing market in Waterloo Region. At this time last year, with dour news about “the Great Recession,” and snowstorms pummeling the region, house Read More...

January 06, 2010 Source: Greg MacDonald, The Waterloo Chronicle Undeveloped land is quickly disappearing in Waterloo and the municipality’s economic development committee wants the city to have a strategic vision as applications come in to fill those few remaining plots. The committee is organizing an economic summit this spring that will collect various visions Read More...

December 16, 2009 Source: CNW Airline unveils new schedule for the summer of 2010 CALGARY - WestJet today unveiled its flight schedule for the summer of 2010, featuring five new routes and expanded service on 19 trans-border and international routes. The summer schedule also includes new non-stop service between Vancouver and Kitchener-Waterloo, Vancouver and Read More...

December 14, 2009 Source: 570 News Waterloo - Open Text has unveiled plans for a -million dollar expansion. A new five-storey building at the company's headquarters near Columbia and Hagey in Waterloo will more than double the office space. The building should be completed in the summer of 2011. Executive Chair and CSO, Tom Jenkins Read More...

December 9, 2009 Source: Rose Simone, The Record WATERLOO REGION – A life sciences incubator is needed to nurture businesses that are emerging from research activity in this region, a recent study concludes. The study into the need for a commercialization facility for life sciences startups was commissioned by Canada’s Technology Triangle Inc. Read More...

December 8, 2009 Source: FOXNews.com http:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/search-results\/m\/27817565\/northern-exposure.htm Automatically Generated Transcript (may not be 100% accurate) " Back in this country now we're Fox News on the job -- while Americans sheds jobs every week our neighbor to the north Canada. This finding a way to add jobs believe it or not the US is one of Read More...

Source: CTV Chongqing  Read More...

November 26, 2009 Source: The Record WATERLOO — International diplomats will descend on Waterloo Dec. 3 for a dinner and reception designed to promote trade and investment. Consul generals from more than 15 countries, including China, Japan, Sweden and the Netherlands, are expected to attend the event, hosted by Canada’s Technology Triangle Inc. It Read More...

Cambridge - Canada’s Technology Triangle Inc. along with its host, the University of Waterloo’s School of Architecture brought together students from local post secondary institutions, municipal, regional, and business representatives to produce new ideas for development sites across Waterloo Region. The ideas charrette allowed students in planning, architectural and business programs Read More...

November 12, 2009 Source: Communitech Waterloo Region, ON – Entrepreneur Week in Waterloo Region, the largest such event in North America, kicks off Monday with a keynote speech by Chris Hughes, co-founder of Facebook and continues throughout the week with events for audiences ranging from students to CEOs. The week, which corresponds to Read More...

November 12, 2009 Source: Susanna Kelley, The Canadian Press WATERLOO -- When we think BlackBerry, we think of Research In Motion Ltd. making billions, with thousands of employees. But in Canada's Technology Triangle of Kitchener, Waterloo and Cambridge, 2,000 high-paying, hi-tech jobs are going begging. Yet unemployment is at 9.2%, higher than the national Read More...

November 12, 2009 Source: FedDev Ontario SARNIA, ON — Southern Ontario businesses that would like to increase their sales internationally can get assistance thanks to a new investment announced by the Honourable Gary Goodyear, Minister of State responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario). "This investment will help Read More...

November 6, 2009 Source: Luisa D'Amato, The Record WATERLOO — Wilfrid Laurier University and University of Waterloo are the best schools of their size in Ontario, and University of Waterloo has the best overall reputation in Canada, according to the Maclean’s magazine annual ranking of universities. Wilfrid Laurier moved up a place this year, Read More...

November 2, 2009 Source: Nestor E. Arellano, ITworldcanada.com Ontario game developers are set to benefit big time from key proposed changes to several existing tax programs, specifically to the Ontario Interactive Digital Media Tax Credit. The Ontario government is giving local digital entertainment industry a boost by offering greater tax incentives to encourage Read More...

October 30, 2009 Source: Industry Canada TORONTO, Ontario — Today at a meeting of the Canadian Automotive Partnership Council (CAPC), the Honourable Tony Clement, Minister of Industry, introduced changes to the Government of Canada’s Automotive Innovation Fund (AIF) in order to increase investment in automotive research and development (R&D). The total investment threshold Read More...

October 17, 2009 Source: Terry Pender, The Record KITCHENER — Roger Farwell knows from experience how hard it is to convince people to move here. “I can tell you that is even true in our architectural and engineering firm — next to impossible to recruit the kind of architects and engineers we can use,” Read More...

October 14, 2009 Source: Ontario Technology Corridor Ottawa, ON – Employing nearly 256,000 people among 5,900 companies in five urban regions, the Ontario Technology Corridor is positioning the province at the forefront of the digital entertainment revolution at the Ottawa International Animation Festival. “Evidence of the Ontario Technology Corridor’s digital entertainment sector leadership Read More...

October 14, 2009 Source: Jon Griffin, Birmingham Post Eleven high-tech West Midlands companies have jetted to Canada to explore new export opportunities. UK Trade & Investment’s Coventry & Warwickshire international trade team is currently leading a market visit to Toronto demonstrating the expertise of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) in the West Midlands. The companies Read More...

October 9, 2009 Source: Exchange Morning Post A celebration and reality check: annual ‘quality of life’ report card highlights Waterloo Region’s progress and where improvement is needed WATERLOO REGION – What are the people in Waterloo Region most concerned about? Where do we need to improve and what are we doing well? Where should Read More...

October 7, 2009 Source: Exchange Morning Post Conestoga College students receiving real-life work experience, businesses reaping benefits of cost-effective innovations that help increase productivity, profitability Kitchener – More than 2,000 Ontario college students – including many from Conestoga College – successfully put their research and innovation skills into practice with about 400 small and Read More...

October 7, 2009 Source: CNW Ten-day event marks largest out-of-studio undertaking in TVO's history For the second time this year, Waterloo will play host to TVO when Ontario's public broadcaster brings a large contingent of its production unit to Perimeter Institute for Quantum to Cosmos: Ideas for the Future festival (Q2C). TVO was Read More...

FedDev Ontario is now accepting applications under the Southern Ontario Development Program (SODP) for projects that will stimulate local economies and enhance the growth and competitiveness of Southern Ontario businesses and communities Read More...

The Kitchener-Waterloo-Cambridge area is the best place in Ontario to buy a house or invest in a business property with hopes of making money, according to a report released Friday. Read More...