North Bay Mayor Al McDonald is trying to attend a Northern Ontario Summit scheduled for Cochrane next month.
The summit will look at barriers facing the north when pursuing opportunities like attracting Southern Ontario businesses northward.
Cochrane Mayor Peter Politis says the north has vast resources and it’s time to unlock them.
McDonald, has worked with Politis in the past, including the effort several years ago to save the Northlander.
McDonald describes the Cochrane Mayor as a passionate northerner.
What McDonald sees as a pursuit is economic development and working on strategies that will bring jobs to all northern communities.
“As a collective group we have to send a strong message that Northern Ontario is open for business,” said McDonald.
One possible strategy that could work is promoting the north’s tax structure.
McDonald points out that existing taxes and infrastructure are making Southern Ontario very unaffordable but that’s not the case for many regions of the north.
“We’re very affordable,” McDonald said.
The three day Summit runs September 11th to the 13th and McDonald is working on making it to at least one day of the event.
