ITNovaScotia.com - Where IT's at in Nova Scotia > News - "Atlantic Canada is not close to reaching its full potential"

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Posted by: ITNovaScotia Admin	Wednesday, September 27, 2006
Reader wants to see government non-intervention By ROGER TAYLOR Business Columnist MICHAEL TURNER doesn’t pull punches. Atlantic Canada is not close to reaching its full potential, he says, mainly because government interference has helped to create an economy that has trouble sustaining itself. The Halifax real estate expert, president of Turner Drake and Partners Ltd., says he first came to Halifax from Toronto in the late 1970s, attracted at first by the scenery and the lifestyle and the endless promise the region seemed to hold. Now, Turner says he has a hollow feeling that the Atlantic region’s economy is dying. His real estate firm is conducting a detailed study of the office and warehouse space in six major centres in Atlantic Canada, about 30 million square feet, and while everyone hears about hot spots like St. John’s and Halifax doing well, he says early indications seem to indicate demand is falling in Halifax as well... See the full story at The ChronicleHerald.ca

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Comments (3)

Re: "Atlantic Canada is not close to reaching its full potential"

By Anon on Thursday, September 28, 2006

I completely agree. Atlantic Canada is not creating a sustainable economy by handing out payroll rebate after payroll rebate to large corporations. These corporations often have the region in a stranglehold, threatening that they'll leave if they don't get more subsidies.

There is a huge amount of talent here. IMO, the Atlantic provinces need to stop competing against each other for outside big business. Provincial governments need to take most of the money being wasted on the big corps and invest in more local startups and growing medium-sized local companies, as well as create a reasonable environment to keep them here. The federal government should also take more responsibility to promote and develop this area.

Please, no more call centres!!!

Re: "Atlantic Canada is not close to reaching its full potential"

By p.b. on Friday, September 29, 2006

Agreed anon. All these rebates do is give these new firms an unfair advantage over the existing firms. What a way to reward businesses that have started here all on their own and worked to stay in business for years all on their own, give the competition a hand out. We may as well punch them in the face as that is what it amounts to. We are a region that likes to reward others and put down our own it seems. Time to take pride in what we have, not what others have that we can buy.

As for call centers, I heard on CBC this AM that their was a job fair in Liverpool for a new call center company that wanted to take over the call center that closed a month ago. Does no one see the problem here?? We go in circles chasing these companies that will turn around and burn us over and over. Call centers are not the answer, they are putting all our eggs in someone elses basket, with our government helping them pay for the eggs AND basket.

We need to create and promote a healthy business envirnonment, these handouts need to end. NSBI seems to be little more than a home for those that like to travel at the tax payers expense, wining and dining those from away with more money than most locals have to run on.

Re: "Atlantic Canada is not close to reaching its full potential"	By Tom R. on Monday, October 09, 2006
call centers are crap jobs. not sure why the govenment thinks they are IT just because they have a computer in front of them - when sears had a catalogue call center here, did they call it IT or retail? morons.