Do you think Chatham-Kent's foreign trips are a good use of tax dollars? A new report may help you decide.
The information report is being brought to Monday night's council meeting regarding the return on investment on the Municipality of Chatham-Kent's foreign trips from 2011-2017.
At the May 14 council meeting, Councillor Doug Sulman requested a report from administration on travel expenses and the return on investment of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) sales and trade missions.
The report outlines the strategy and costs associated with attracting business investment from off-shore prospects and efforts throughout the USA to facilitate job creation for the community.
During the period of 2011–2017, the sectors targeted for business attraction included:
- Advanced manufacturing
- Food processing
- Greenhouse supply chain
- International education
- Fertilizer production
Economic Development Services (EcDev) and the mayor’s office are responsible for the planning, coordination, and execution of trade missions abroad led by elected officials and senior EcDev departmental staff.
According to the municipality's report, both the provincial and federal governments sponsor sector-specific trade shows and missions abroad.
EcDev staff also participate with business partners on international business trips. These business trips differ from trade missions as they are planned in conjunction with a business partner to address a specific project or opportunity with an international partner.
The municipality highlights Chatham-Kent's recent business attractions:
- Secured Krinner GmbH investment from Germany, which currently has 21 employees manufacturing ground screws.
- Secured an international school that has purchased property in Wallaceburg with a planned international student residence. The school is projecting ten new jobs.
- Secured investment in a greenhouse supply chain and maintenance company from the Netherlands with projected employment to average 20 new jobs along with seasonal ramp-up to 50.
- A group of companies out of Peru have visited Chatham-Kent to explore the establishment of a Global Food Processing and Distribution Centre with the potential importation of bulk food from Peru for North American markets and the export of Chatham-Kent grown food for South American markets.
- The municipality has been successful in attracting investors that purchased two local companies that were in danger of closing. These investments resulted in saving 200 jobs.
The total cost of the Economic Development Staff expenses from 2011 to present is $316,332.81. The average Economic Development annual cost is $45,190.40.
The total cost of foreign direct investment expenditures is $632,963.74.
A total of $126,009.87 of federal funding has been received between 2013-2017, bringing the net foreign direct investment costs down to $506,953.87.
The total average annual FDI expense is $72,421.98.
According to the report, commercial tax revenues increased by approximately $250,000 in 2017. In total, 271 jobs were either created or saved as a result of these investments.
The additional jobs can also be expected to benefit Chatham-Kent by generating additional residential property taxes. The estimated additional tax revenue from the 271 new jobs alone is over $700,000 per year.
