CALABOGIE & AREA BUSINESS ASSOCIATION INC. ACCOMPLISHMENTS, 2006-07

1.0 ASSOCIATION STATUS

Since the spring of 2002, when the incorporated association had 17 inactive members, CABA has grown leaps and bounds and is maintaining a membership of over 100. General and executive meetings were reduced to six this year as a result of a change to our bylaws and attendance at CABA meetings increased. Meetings were held August 14, Sept. 11 (tour of Calabogie Motorsports Park), Nov. 27 and Feb. 19 at the Calabogie Community Hall and May 14 (at Murphy’s Landing Restaurant and Pub). CABA members provided input into the Township Strategic Plan at the August 14 meeting. The newly elected Reeve, three Township Councilors and CAO discussed CABA issues with us on Nov. 27 and Economic Development Committee members and councilors discussed the Business Incubator Study with us at our Feb. 19 meeting.

Minutes of the previous general meeting and the agenda for the next meeting were

distributed by email or paper copy before each meeting. Annual fees were raised from $25.00 to $30.00 for the year beginning July 1, 2007, to cover new items, including, for example, to raise CABA’s profile in the community through the use of CABA decals for business windows and vehicles and volunteer identification such as CABA caps at community events for 2007-08, ensuring that volunteers are clearly identifiable as CABA members.

Terry Brennan of Calabogie has audited the CABA books since the fiscal year 2002-03 and up to the year 2005-06. Annual corporation reports have been submitted to the province of Ontario.

2.0 FUND RAISING

CABA's t-shirt sale, on July 1st, 2006, at the Canada Day Celebration in Calabogie, with "I partied on the lake in Calabogie" on each shirt, raised $1298.00. Of this money, $221.75 was donated to the Township’s Canada Day Fund. Clear profit to date on this project is $483.54. There is enough stock to sell more shirts at the July 1, 2007 sale for an additional profit of $429.00. Canada Day is now CABA’s primary fund-raising opportunity.

Over the three year period 2003 to 2006, a total of $7654.89 was raised for local community improvements with $5613.23 of this amount raised for Barnet Park. At the May 2007 annual meeting, members will be asked to vote to spend the money on a gazebo to be built in 2007. It is expected that the $2041.66 raised for trail development might be used at Barnet Park for trails or trail signage. Included in the $7654.89 amount is the $3063.87 which has already been turned over to the township to hold as per Ontario Lottery rules. The remaining $4591.02, raised through golf tournaments, is being held in the CABA bank account.

CABA’s new strategy is to conduct only one annual CABA fund raising activity in the community each year, on Canada Day, and to focus on the successful obtainment of government grants to support community and economic development.

3.0 GRANTS

3.1 CABA officially partnered with the township's Economic Development Committee in 2006 to form a Grants Sub-committee of which half its members, Debora Giffin and Carolyn Jakes, are CABA representatives. Three grant proposals have been written and three were approved, two from Community Futures Development Corporation and one from Services Canada (HRSDC).

3.2 In 2006, the Grants Committee obtained approval for a grant for a business incubator study which was completed in February 2007. A traditional business incubator was not recommended, but rather a modified, virtual incubator drawing on the expertise of volunteer mentors: from CABA, retired business people, local and county resources. The consultants found there were a number of businesses that asked and showed a need for mentoring support to grow their businesses. A strong need for pro-active support from the county was identified and this study can be used to leverage more help from the county to raise the county’s profile as a resource in this township. A hot button on the township web site, such as “Ready for Business”, was recommended to link to resources available. It was suggested that Greater Madawaska Township Council needs to work on a pro-development image. It was also recommended that CABA raise its profile and become more active in highlighting business support resources.

3.3 The Grant's Committee assisted the Griffith and Denbigh Lions' Club in the writing of a successful grant application for an addition to the Lions’ Hall in Griffith which the Lions lease from the township.

3.4 The Grants Committee’s first grant, from HRSDC, covering the cost of one person year for a Research Assistant ends June 2007. The project has resulted in a data base of information about grants which the committee will utilized and maintain on an on-going basis.

3.5 The Grants Committee proposed a township-wide project to launch a special event to attract more visitors to the area and stimulate the local economy. A committee of community volunteers, including CABA representatives (Fay Wilson and Scott D’Ascenzo) and two township councilors, has begun working on a weekend event in 2009 with an historical and lumbering theme focusing on roots, routes and rivers. Grants will be pursued to support this initiative.

4.0 ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

4.1 Four CABA members served on the Greater Madawaska Township Economic

Development Committee: Ken Lauzon, Debora Giffin and Carolyn Jakes and David

Lester. Issues addressed included: lobbying for a cell phone tower on Dickson Mountain from Rogers Communications expected to be operational by July 2007 and the production of a second, updated tourist brochure listing tourism related businesses and a map of the township. The township web site "www.somuchmore.ca was launched and information about recreation activities in the area was added. The committee successfully recommended a slogan, “So much more to explore" and a new logo to the township, both of which are now being used.

4.2 Communication was increased with other community groups to focus resources/effort to achieve common goals. For example, CABA took the lead to initiate a project within the Township's Economic Development Committee to construct a new township "Welcome to Calabogie" sign and an events board for the promotion of local events. CABA’s VP calls local organizations and post events on the new board on Highway 508 at 511 with assistance from the president of the Calabogie Senior’s Club, Al Lawrie, who is taller and can reach the top of the board.

4.3 CABA member, Debora Giffin, continued to serve on the Renfrew County Chambers of Commerce Council. The goal is to share ideas and experiences and to select projects to benefit both the rural and urban economic sectors of Renfrew County. Its first project, the “Buy Local” Program, initiated in June 2006, included a successful grant to hire a project director, April Cappel of Calabogie. April has been attending meetings of community groups and township council meetings, writing The Local Yokel columns in the newspapers, and using the media and promotional material to gain support for the buy local initiative.

The Renfrew County Buy Local Program allowed CABA to increase its focus on Trades and Services as well as increase communication amongst all the Chambers of Commerce including CABA.

Another project of the Chambers of Commerce Council is the Speakers Series which brings high profile speakers such as the president of Lee Valley Tools to the county.

4.4 CABA continued to have representation on the County's Ottawa Valley Economic Development Committee allowing CABA and the Township’s Economic Development Committee to have up to date information on grants and county projects and to network with government economic development officals at the local, county and provincial level. Carolyn Jakes attended meetings with Shelley Monaghan as substitute representative.

5.0 GENERAL PROJECTS AND ACTIVITIES

5.1 Twenty banners were again supported on hydro poles in the area depicting snow in the winter and the Canadian flag the rest of the year. A new project to replace the banners, as they are now all worn out, is under way. CABA will create a strategy to update, expand and maintain the banners.

5.2 CABA's president, Mike Greenley, wrote "CABA Corner" articles for several editions of the Madawaska Highlander newspaper which were distributed to all residences and businesses in the Greater Madawaska Township and the Burnstown and Denbigh areas at no cost to CABA. For one of the articles, Mike interviewed councillor and reeve candidates in the fall and published the results before the election. (Distribution of the Highlander, as of May, 2007, is twenty-eight hundred copies.)

5.3 In May 2007, a four-page directory insert was included in the Madawaska

Highlander with all CABA businesses listed under categories similar to the

directory available on the CABA web site. Twelve hundred extra copies of the

directory are available for distribution through businesses in the township

as of May 14, 2007.

5.4 The CABA web-site, www.calabogie.org, was updated by David Lester with input from Director, Gary Reed, and includes minutes of meetings, CABA's 2006-08 Strategic Plan, the annual report and a business directory.

5.5 Gary and Georgette Reed represented CABA at the Remembrance Day ceremony in

Calabogie and presented a wreath. CABA purchased a tree for the Calabogie Seniors' Bogie Lights Christmas tree display at Heritage Point. Caorlyn Jakes and Julia Broomfield carried the CABA banner in the Calabogie and Area Lion’s Club Santa Claus parade.

5.6 The 2006 CABA award winners were community volunteer, Wes Bomhower, for Excellence in Community Service and Corinne Sullivan, Calabogie Pizzeria, for Excellence in Customer Service and Kim Carnegie, The Hair Port, for Store Front Presentation. In 2007, the third annual awards program will be held in the fall.

5.7 CABA continued with a second year in the County's Adopt-a-Road Program covering the stretch of 1.2 km of Highway 511 from Highway 508 to the bridge in the village of Calabogie. CABA has two highway signs provided free and installed by the County and the CABA team collected 8 bags of garbage in the spring of 2007 compared to 17 in the first year of the program. Garbage will be collected two times per year. Team members included Teri MacDonald and family, Carolyn Jakes, and Calabogie residents, Mary and Mike Dumoulin. Kim Carnegie cleaned Carolyn’s section of Highway 508 so that Carolyn could focus on the CABA section of 511.

5.8 CABA again applied to Services Canada and received funding for a summer student for 2006 (Calabogie resident, Catherine Neudorf), who worked five days a week at the Calabogie Information Centre at Heritage Point. The township summer student covered the other two days a week. This summer’s 2007 CABA student has already been hired by Carolyn Jakes and Shelley Monaghan, and will have time for some extra CABA duties as well.

5.9 The issue of teambuilding was addressed in this 2006-07 year ensuring a better and more effective distribution of activities to CABA members, thereby spreading committee workload. This initiative will continue.

5.10 CABA hosted a booth at the Newcomer’s Night in Renfrew in the late fall of 2006, on the invitation of the Renfrew and Area Chamber of Commerce. New residents to the Renfrew area were introduced to our township and Burnstown.

5.11 CABA voted to send $100 to the Combermere Disaster Fund for tree replacment at a tourism-related business.

5.12 CABA requested and received, from The Renfrew County Health Unit, the results of the water tests at local public beaches for 2005 and 2006 which follows up on the testing CABA had done previously.

5.13 CABA members have increased their participation in township committees and attendance at township committee/council meetings to contribute to the community as a whole and to keep up to date with current issues.

5.14 CABA members are actively encouraging township council to work towards a more vibrant and vital business community which leads to more services for the residential community.

6.0 Major Issues for 2007-08

6.1 In the winter of 2006, the executive and board of directors produced a two-year strategic plan for CABA. Section one of the strategies applies to CABA and the second section contains strategies for partnering with the Township's Economic Development Committee.

During the 2007-08 fiscal year, it is the responsibility of the Executive and the Board of Directors of CABA to ensure that the actions identified in CABA’s Strategic Plan are prioritized and implemented to the extent possible.

6.2 CABA is looking forward to being part of the proposed strategic planning process for the township of GM. In this regard, we must foster respect for the ecosystem’s integrity while producing economic gains.