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Initial plans for the 2006 "Ontario East Municipal Conference" (OEMC) are already in the works. The 14th Annual event will be held at the Ambassador Hotel, Kingston from September 13th - 15th.

This conference is co-hosted by the Ontario Ministry of Municipal Affairs and the Ontario East Economic Development Commission and is designed to be of interest to municipal elected and appointed officials. Current topics relating to provincial legislation and its impact on the municipal sector, economic development issues, agriculture and tourism activities are presented throughout this three day event.

Stay tuned to this site and www.oemc.ca for updates!

This conference is organized by Municipal Events Management.

A group of Business Immigrants recently wrapped up a two day, one night tour through the South East Ontario Region in search of business and investment opportunities.

The purpose of the tour hosted by the Community Futures Development Corporations (CFDC’s) of South East Ontario in participation with Industry Canada is to introduce new Business Immigrants to rural South East Ontario communities.

CFDC’s worked with the Business Immigration Section of the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade and Economic Developers at the Municipal government level to bring the tour to fruition.

Potential investors visited such locations as Cobourg, Trent Hills, Peterborough, several communities throughout Northumberland and Peterborough Counties before winding up their tour in the Kawartha Lakes Region.

The tour was organized by Municipal Events Management.

Chief Administrative Officers and Clerk/Administrators from across the Province gathered together in Eastern Ontario for the Ontario Municipal Administrators' Association Fall Conference.

The conference organizing Committee namely, the United Counties of Leeds & Grenville, Township of Rideau Lakes, Town of Gananoque, Township of Edwardsburgh/Cardinal and Village of Westport selected the Town of Gananoque as the host location.

The keynote address "The Challenge of Innovating in Municipal Government" presented by Professor Sandford Borins, Ph.D., explored ways to change the traditional bias against innovation in the municipal sector.

A panel presentation on "Service Delivery Review" featured Eastern Ontario examples of municipal innovation and creative approaches to service delivery.

Brian Marchant of Northeast 45 - an Organizational Development and Human Resources Consultant, provided an overview of the recent changes, both in effect and proposed, that will have a huge impact on human resource management within the municipal sector and a road map of these changes to enable municipalities to effectively respond.

Conference delegates and their companions enjoyed a dinner cruise among the beautiful 1000 Islands.

Friday morning John Gerretsen, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing addressed delegates. The conference wrapped up with a fast-paced hilarious interactive session by Second City veteran and humorist Deborah Kimmett on "How to Become A Fearless Leader."

The conference was organized by Municipal Events Management.

Municipal elected and appointed officials from across Eastern Ontario gathered together in Kingston for the 13th annual "Ontario East Municipal Conference" (OEMC) the largest annual municipal conference held east of Toronto!

OEMC continues to deliver plenary sessions and numerous breakouts featuring speakers with hands-on, practical experience of interest to small rural, medium and urban communities. Private sector and government ministries participate through exhibits showcasing businesses and programs of interest to the municipal sector. Conference attendees have ample opportunity to visit exhibits and network with colleagues throughout this 3 day event.

The Honourable John Gerretsen, Minister of Municipal Affairs & Housing was on hand to present recipients with 'Long Standing Service Recognition Awards'. This program was introduced by the Ontario government in 2004 to recognize municipally elected officials with at least 25 years of service.

"Each day, we benefit from the work of these hard-working individuals, and today they will receive the recognition they deserve," said Susan Ellis, President of Ontario East Economic Development Commission.

Jay Amer, General Manager, Greater Peterborough Area Economic Development Corporation (GPA EDC), was named as the recipient of the Ontario East Economic Developer of the Year award sponsored by Bell Canada.

“Development is a competitive business and it is a significant tribute to Jay that his peers have acknowledged his considerable skills and leadership through this award” said Bill Lockington, Chair, GPA EDC Board of Directors. Jay was presented with the award along with a scholarshipy to further his education in economic development.

Click here to view the 2005 OEMC Conference Highlights

• Click here to review annual Conference Highlights

The conference was organized by Municipal Events Management.

On Friday, a group of Business Immigrants wrapped up a three day, two night tour through the Eastern Ontario Region in search of business and investment opportunities.

The purpose of the tour hosted by the Community Futures Development Corporations (CFDC’s) of Eastern Ontario in participation with Industry Canada is to introduce new Business Immigrants to rural Eastern Ontario communities.

CFDC’s worked with the Business Immigration Section of the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade and Economic Developers at the Municipal government level to bring the tour to fruition.

The origin of the individual investors included Korea, Brazil, India, Malaysia, Iran, Guyana, Venezuela, Bangladesh, Tanzania, Pakistan, Singapore and China.

Potential investors visited such locations as Brockville, the South Grenville area, Morrisburg and the Counties of Renfrew, Frontenac and Prince Edward before winding up their tour in the Bay of Quinte region.

The tour was organized by Municipal Events Management.

Initial plans for the 2005 "Ontario East Municipal Conference" (OEMC) are already in the works. The 13th Annual event will be held at the Ambassador Hotel, Kingston from September 14th - 16th.

This conference is co-hosted by the Ontario Ministry of Municipal Affairs and the Ontario East Economic Development Commission and is designed to be of interest to municipal elected and appointed officials. Current topics relating to provincial legislation and its impact on the municipal sector, economic development issues, agriculture and tourism activities are presented throughout this three day event.

Stay tuned to this site and www.oemc.ca for updates!

The conference was organized by Municipal Events Management.

The "bon-bons" were flying in Frontenac County on October 6th when fifty-two municipal delegates gathered at the Fairmount Home Auditorium to hear W. D. (Rusty) Russell, Q.C., speak on the topic "A Conflict of Interest - How a Judge Analyzes a Conflict of Interest Case".

Just what does constitute "a pecuniary interest" (money/financial) such that if a Municipal Councillor a) participates in Council's discussions of, or b) votes on a subject, would lead the Courts to determine that he or she had a "conflict of interest" within the provisions of the Municipal Act?

In his typical interesting, humorous and informative style Rusty guided his audience through the eight (8) main principles that the Courts consider when making decisions on a conflict of interest case.

This 1/2 day workshop was of great interest to not only municipal Councillors and staff but also to those who serve on Committees of Council and Local Boards.

Mr. Russell is senior Member of the law firm of Christie, Miller, Koughan, Winnitoy, Veldboom of Orillia, Ontario and has been lecturing on municipal subjects for a number of years. He has also authored many papers and books and is a frequent contributor of articles to Municipal World, one of Canada's most popular municipal magazines.

The workshop was organized by Municipal Events Management.

Municipal Elected and Appointed Officials from across the Eastern Ontario Region gathered together in Kingston September 15th - 17th for the 12th annual "Ontario East Municipal Conference", the largest annual municipal conference held east of Toronto!

The Honourable John Gerretsen, Minister of Municipal Affairs & Housing and Minister Responsible for Seniors, attended to address conference delegates on Wednesday morning, the opening day of the conference.

Leonard Lee, Chairman of Lee Valley Tools Ltd., took the stage as Keynote Speaker on Thursday morning. The subject of Mr. Lee's presentation was of great interest to his audience "Attracting and Retaining Jobs in Your Community".

Breakout sessions covered legislation and timely government programs from "Planning Act Amendments/the Provincial Policy Statement", "Municipal Finance and Capital Asset Management" to "Ontario Strategic Infrastructure Financing" and the more recently announced "Community Investment Support Program". A variety of economic development sessions ranged from "Putting the Beef Back into Your Manufacturing Community" to "Technology-Based Site Selection" and "Focusing Your Sales Approach".

OEMC continues to deliver topics touching on every aspect of municipal government, of interest to large and small, rural and urban Eastern Ontario Municipalities. This year witnessed another increase to the Exhibitor section of the conference with several new private sector firms participating. The average number of delegates per municipality in 2004 increased to just under 4. A new twist for 2004 was a "Companions Program" which was so well received is on the planning schedule for 2005.

The conference was organized by Municipal Events Management.

A series of workshops on "Downtown Revitalization" were held across the Province in May of this year. The one day workshops developed by the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing were well received by participants.

Kingston was the location for the Eastern Ontario workshop and attracted not only business leaders and local government representatives from across Eastern Ontario but from communities as far west as Clarington, Ajax, Whitby and Durham.

Stephanie Redman, Program Manager for the "National Main Street Center", National Trust for Historic Preservation of Washington, DC presented on the nationally successful "Main Street Approach" to commercial district revitalization that has been the leader in the field for more than 20 years.

Stephanie noted that "The Main Street Approach" has become a powerful economic development tool and is designed to improve all aspects of the downtown or central business district, producing both tangible and intangible benefits. Improving economic management, strengthening public participation, and making downtown a fun place to visit are as critical to Main Street's future as recruiting new businesses, rehabilitating buildings, and expanding parking. Building on downtown's inherent assets -- rich architecture, personal service, and traditional values and most of all, a sense of place -- the Main Street approach has rekindled entrepreneurship, downtown cooperation and civic concern.

In the United States it has earned national recognition as a practical strategy appropriately scaled to a community's local resources and conditions. And because it is a locally driven program, all initiative stems from local issues and concerns.

Mimi Ward, Partner in Malone Given Parsons Ltd., highlighted numerous downtown analysis projects she has worked on with communities throughout Ontario. An interactive panel discussion with workshop participants followed.

The Eastern Ontario workshop was promoted by the Ontario East Economic Development Commission. Alternate workshop locations were Stratford and Barrie and were promoted through the Community Futures Development Corporation of Chatham-Kent.

The workshop was organized by Municipal Events Management.