Business Retention and Expansion

What is a BR+E?

A Business Retention and Expansion (BR+E) program is considered a best practice in Economic Development worldwide. It is a process that municipalities undertake to better understand businesses in their communities. A BR+E supports businesses by helping a municipality to learn about issues and opportunities for local business and identifies priority projects that will address these needs. The result is an action plan that forms a key part of the municipality’s ongoing economic development strategy.

The strength of the BR+E project is that it is community based. It is a powerful consultation process with community volunteers guiding the process along side a BR+E coordinator from the City’s Economic Development staff. Community volunteers are trained to visit businesses and conduct confidential interviews with senior management and owners.

Through these face-to-face interviews, the City receives timely and important information to help identify and support the current and future needs of its business community. This information also informs the City’s Economic Development Strategic Plan and investment attraction activities, as well as the City’s budget planning process.

Creating Lasting Impacts

The BR+E program plays an important role in creating positive changes in our community. Information received from past BR+E projects is still being used today to inform the decisions of the City’s Economic Development Division and City Council. Some of the changes that have been made as a result of past BR+E projects include:

Implementation of a successful family physician recruitment program.
Development of the “Work in Quinte” labour attraction initiative.
Transportation improvements including intersection changes, new linkages, road improvements and transit routes.
Infrastructure improvements including new water mains, increased water pressure, sanitary sewer extensions, fibre optic service extensions.
Downtown Community Improvement Plans (CIP)
Business Park signage installations.
Training programs with community partners geared to the needs of local business.

Current BR+E Projects

The City of Belleville recently conducted a Manufacturing BR+E called “Prosper Belleville” which was aimed at gaining a better understanding the challenges and opportunities our manufacturers are facing in a post-COVID environment, and to support future business park planning.

Prosper Belleville was initiated in July of 2023 with funding support through the Rural Economic Development Fund. Economic development staff and a volunteer task force consisting of 28 volunteers, worked together to conduct extensive data collection through a number of interviews, surveys and industry visits. This work resulted in the following highlights:

746 hours invested by staff and volunteers
38 interviews and site visits conducted
86% industry participation rate
26 actionable items

Action Items

There were 26 action items identified throughout the BR+E process. These items have been categorized into four themes: newcomer supports, labour attraction and retention, business supports, and City processes and services.

Newcomer Supports

The goal of these items is to support the integration and retention of new immigrant workers in the community.

Establish a working group with key stakeholders to undertake the following:
- Understand Federal and Provincial Immigration programs and processes that lead to Permanent Residency (PR)
- Understand challenges rural communities face in retaining newcomer talent
- Understand the challenges industry faces in supporting newcomer workers to obtain PR status and challenges newcomers face in obtaining PR status
- Assist employers in navigating the various immigration programs that lead to PR status
- Assess the need for enhanced services to assist employers in navigating the various immigration programs that lead to PR status
Offer a pilot training program for newcomers on Canadian culture and workplace expectations
Identify a communications tool that clearly outlines resources and services available to both newcomers and employers
Develop and promote a strategy around the Workplace Inclusion Charter (WIC) that will support industry, business and organizations to integrate EDI practices in the workplace
Investigate the need for an Industry Working Group to navigate workplace issues related to inclusion and diversity in the workplace

Attraction & Retention

The goal of these items is to enhance labour attraction and retention within the City.

Promote and support educational related activities around manufacturing including:
- Skills Ontario Truck
- Doors Open Manufacturing Day
- Increasing skills training within the education system

Establish a high school award for manufacturing and skilled trades
Survey high school students and determine what would keep them in the community beyond high school

Organize a public interest campaign that promotes the manufacturing sector as a viable career Promote the City at community events outside of Belleville with the purpose of: Attracting skilled workers to manufacturing jobs
Promoting Belleville as a place to live, work and play
Develop a positive image campaign to promote the City as a place to live, work and play
Continue with the City’s Physician Recruitment Program
Encourage community clean-up initiatives to address garbage, boarded-up buildings, etc.
Continue the plan for Community Integrated Model of Care for the homeless population

Business Supports

The goal of these items is to support ongoing industry growth and expansion.

Explore the need and feasibility for establishing innovative, diverse housing solutions to address lack of housing for industry employees
Quantify industry safety and security concerns related to the homeless population

City Processes and Services

The goal of these items is to increase transparency and understanding of the City of Belleville’s Development Process.

Develop and conduct education workshops to educate businesses and developers about the development process
Produce explainer videos covering key aspects of the City’s development process
Clearly identify and communicate the department within the City to support/navigate businesses and developers through the development process
Implement a CRM within the Economic Development Department
Establish a communications plan for ED staff that will include branding and tools for communicating with industry
Create an easy to navigate Economic Development webpage that details services offered by the department and connects industry, supports and public to resources and relevant information
Update the City’s Community Profile Plan
Communicate timelines for establishing Elexicon Services when Industry expands
- Research whether a process map currently exists and can be used by the City as a communication tool for industry
- Create a process map tool for industry
Receive feedback from industry about the impact of recent changes to transit route
Review City by-laws to see if updates can be made to support the provision of childcare services in the Industrial Park
Investigate opportunities for establishing childcare for employers in the North East Industrial Park

Next Steps:

The final step of the Proper Belleville Manufacturing BR+E is to implement the action items outlined in the final report, over the next 3-5 years.

The City, through its Economic Development Division is committed to working with community stakeholders to implement the Prosper Belleville Manufacturing BR+E Action items and will continuously monitor the progress of these actions and report on what has been accomplished, what remains to be done and any challenges to implementation.

A full background on the project, KPIs and timeline for the 26 action items, can be found in the Prosper Belleville Manufacturing 2024 BR+E Report.

For more information, please contact Victoria Watts, Business Growth and Retention Specialist at 613-967-5260 or vwatts@belleville.ca.

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