Dear Editor:
The recent ending of tax-incentives has sparked discussion among some of the business community in Rimbey. Questions and concerns regarding this decision dominated the recent community meeting March 22. There were also other points raised that evening which would benefit from further discussion.
One point raised and which I would like to expand upon, is that of making Rimbey an attractive community in which to live.
I have worked with numerous rural communities throughout Alberta over the last number of years. One of the projects I co-ordinated involved more than 30 small communities around the province. The focus of the project was to strengthen efforts to attract and then retain physicians and their families in rural Alberta.
Extensive research, including feedback from physicians, highlights the importance of ensuring the family as a whole is happy as the primary factor in attracting and then keeping the family in the community. The family’s satisfaction is most likely to be achieved by ensuring their interests are met through things such as organized sports (both indoor and out); outdoor informal/recreational opportunities (parks, trails, swimming, biking, etc.); programs and services related to personal interests and needs (public libraries, social services, music, arts and other cultural activities); and community events (to engage/interact with other residents), to name a few. Two other consistent factors which influence the likelihood of families’ choosing communities as their place of residence include the presence of a school and a hospital.
New families not only increase the number of residents in the community at any given time, but also contribute to its longer-term sustainability. Young families raising children are likely to settle in one location for an extended period of time, have need for a broad range of services, more readily purchase goods and services due to levels of income, and are actively involved in the community, its events and activities. Having lived in the community for an extended number of years, parents are more likely to remain in their retirement. Likewise, their children — if they have had a positive experience growing up in the community — may stay as young adults and thus ensure the next generation of residents.
For Rimbey’s businesses to operate in an environment that ensures they thrive, grow and are guaranteed long-term viability, the community must be attractive to families. This strengthening of community, in the long run, will offer a much more stable and reliable environment to all than any temporary tax incentive can promise.
So, let’s all work together to make this a community where everyone wants to live — families, service users and business-owners alike.
Rebekah Seidel