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Greater Niagara Chamber of Commerce

Daily Update: January 14, 2025

In this edition:

  • Canadian Chamber launches Canada-U.S. Trade Tracker
  • Premier Ford reports tariffs from U.S. could cost up to 500,000 Ontario jobs
  • Canada-U.S. relationship ‘tenuous’ and ‘on the ropes,’ Niagara mayors say
  • Welland fairgrounds sold to Mountainview Fairgrounds Developments
  • By-election will be held in St. Catharines to fill Port Dalhousie seat
  • West Lincoln welcomes new Director of Corporate Services/CFO
  • St. Catharines easing parking requirements to incentivize affordable housing
  • Thorold City Hall struggling to find and retain city planners
  • Cogeco to launch wireless services in Canada within ‘coming quarters’
  • Canada Carbon Rebate to deliver $280 average payment to Ontario family of four
  • Focus on Climate

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Canadian and U.S. flags flying above the Blue Water Bridge border connecting Port Huron, Michigan and Sarnia, Ontario

Picture credit: ehrlif / Adobe Stock

Canadian Chamber launches Canada-U.S. Trade Tracker to highlight importance of cross-border commerce

Canada and the United States stand at a crossroads in their trade and economic partnership, with tariffs emerging as the most pressing challenge for businesses on both sides of the border. To clearly map out the vital importance of these relationships and the risks they face, the Canadian Chamber of Commerce’s Business Data Lab has introduced the Canada-U.S. Trade Tracker—a new tool designed to illustrate the ties between our two economies.

Click here to read more.


Ontario Premier Doug Ford addresses the City of Hamilton on March 22, 2024 to announce the City's funding under the Building Faster Fund.

Picture credit: Joey Coleman / CC BY 2.0

Premier Ford reports tariffs from U.S. could cost up to 500,000 Ontario jobs

Ontario Premier Doug Ford says provincial officials estimate that U.S. president-elect Donald Trump’s proposed tariffs on Canadian goods could cost up to half a million jobs.

Ford says the actual number of Ontario jobs affected by the tariffs will depend on what sectors are targeted, but the ministries have told him it could be between 450,000 to 500,000.

Click here to read more.


Niagara Falls Mayor Jim Diodati

Niagara Falls Mayor Jim Diodati | Photo credit: City of Niagara Falls

Canada-U.S. relationship ‘tenuous’ and ‘on the ropes’ Niagara mayors say as border city leaders brace for Trump

Niagara Falls Mayor Jim Diodati, whose city shares a border with Niagara Falls, N.Y., said he would like to see border-community mayors brought to the table to be part of the solution.

“I don’t think one mercurial president is going to change centuries of relations,” he said.

At the same time, Diodati said Canada should also take a business approach to negotiating with Trump.

Click here to read more.


Mark Basciano, President of the Mountainview Building Group

Mark Basciano, President of the Mountainview Building Group | Picture credit: Mountainview Building Group

Welland fairgrounds sold to Mountainview Fairgrounds Developments

Welland’s fairgrounds have a new owner after the Niagara Regional Agricultural Society sold the property for nearly $40 million to Mountainview Fairgrounds Developments Inc. last November.

The 21-hectare parcel of land at 1100 Niagara St. on Welland’s border with Thorold has been in NRAS’ hands since 1967, when the then-Welland County Agricultural Society purchased it for $60,000.


The late Councillor Carlos Garcia

Picture credit: Carlos Garcia / Facebook

By-election will be held in St. Catharines to fill Port Dalhousie seat

St. Catharines Councillors have decided to send voters to the polls to fill the seat left open following the passing of Port Dalhousie Councillor Carlos Garcia.

Click here to read more.


Incoming West Lincoln Director of Corporate Services/CFO Katelyn Repovs

Incoming West Lincoln Director of Corporate Services/CFO Katelyn Repovs | Picture credit: Township of West Lincoln

West Lincoln welcomes new Director of Corporate Services/CFO

The Township of West Lincoln is pleased to announce that, after a comprehensive recruitment process, Katelyn Repovs has accepted the position of Director of Corporate Services / Chief Financial Officer.

Repovs started with the Township in 2019, bringing with her extensive experience in Public Accounting, with a focus on public sector clients.

Click here to read more.


St. Catharines council chambers

Picture credit: City of St. Catharines

St. Catharines eases parking requirements to incentivize affordable housing

St. Catharines has agreed to lift parking space requirements for developers of affordable housing, currently set at 1.25 parking spaces per unit.

Mayor Mat Siscoe said that parking space requirements could also be lowered if residents are offered better public transit options.

Click here to read more.


Thorold city hall

Photo credit: City of Thorold

Thorold City Hall struggling to find and retain city planners

The City of Thorold’s Planning Division currently has several vacant positions, equal to 50% of the division, which have proven to be difficult to fill with qualified and experienced individuals, according to a new report from Thorold’s City Hall.

With planning applications stacking up, the city has decided to look for help elsewhere.

Click here to read more.


The Cogeco logo

Image credit: Cogeco Communications Inc.

Cogeco to launch wireless services in Canada within ‘coming quarters’

Cogeco Inc. says it is set to launch wireless services in Canada in the coming quarters after rolling out cellphone coverage to U.S. customers last year.

The Montreal-based telecommunications company began offering wireless coverage under its Breezeline Mobile brand last year to customers in 13 U.S. states where it already offered broadband internet services.

Click here to read more.


A series of icons representing a carbon tax

Photo credit: Andrii Yalanskyi / Adobe Stock

Latest Canada Carbon Rebate to deliver $280 average payment to Ontario family of four

Today, the Honourable Steven Guilbeault, Minister of Environment and Climate Change, announced that households in provinces which use the federal carbon pricing system will soon receive their latest quarterly Canada Carbon Rebate payment.

Residents of small and rural communities receive an extra 20% supplement beyond the base rebate amount, in recognition of the increased energy needs of rural residents and their reduced access to cleaner transportation options.

Click here to read more.


Did you know?

Starbucks is reversing its open-door policy and will now require a purchase to remain on its premises.


Focus on Climate

Report shows that one in 10 Canadians live in places susceptible to green transition disruption

One in 10 Canadians live in communities susceptible to workforce disruption from the transition to a greener economy, a new report suggests, while underlining solutions that could help those regions adapt.

The Institute for Research on Public Policy says governments in Canada have work to do to support the 68 communities it identified as susceptible on the path to drastically lowering Canada’s emissions.

While existing programs offer some support, “they are not equipped to guide communities through large-scale economic and societal transformations,” said the report published on Jan. 14, the first in a series of planned IRPP policy briefs and community profiles delving into the issue.

Click here to read more.


Through the Daily Updates, the GNCC aims to deliver important business news in a timely manner. We disseminate all news and information we feel will be important to businesses. Inclusion in the Daily Update is not an endorsement by the GNCC.

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