Jordan StevensonFor Port Hope Mayor
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Platform pillar 06

A Diverse Local Economy

Make Port Hope easier to invest in

Businesses and producers already operating in Port Hope should be able to remain, expand and create more local value. New applicants should receive a clear route from first inquiry to opening. Wesleyville matters, but it cannot be the whole economic plan for downtown, agriculture, tourism, film, fishing, local food, small employers, skilled trades and modern businesses that fit the town.

The short version

At a glance

What changes first

  1. Give serious business applicants one accountable municipal contact from first inquiry to opening.
  2. Publish required information, target response times, external approvals and escalation routes.
  3. Strengthen business retention, downtown occupancy, agriculture, local procurement, tourism, film and skilled-trades opportunities.

Who pays

Applicants and industries should pay fair and lawful fees for the services and infrastructure they use. New economic-development programs must identify their municipal cost, partner contributions and expected local value.

What success looks like

  • More businesses open, remain or expand.
  • Approval timelines and external delays are publicly tracked.
  • Downtown vacancies decline.
  • Local employment, procurement, agriculture and visitor-economy activity improve where reliable data exists.

What Jordan supports

  • Business retention, expansion and local procurement
  • Agriculture, value-added food and stronger producer access
  • Tourism, fishing, film and responsible use of municipal assets
  • Investment that creates local work, uses existing infrastructure and adds community value

What Jordan will not support

  • Betting the local economy on one major project
  • Blanket deregulation or skipping safety, environmental, heritage and planning duties
  • Extracting so much from visitors or industry that Port Hope becomes unattractive
  • Applicants being passed between departments and outside agencies without an owner

Concrete commitments

What changes

  • Review the complete path from first inquiry to opening and publish where files stall
  • Assign a single accountable contact to coordinate municipal departments and flag external blockers
  • Publish target response times, required information and escalation routes
  • Use a Port Hope fit test covering jobs, infrastructure, environment, community value and taxpayer exposure
  • Build better links among local producers, restaurants, institutions, retailers and residents

How it works

The mechanisms behind the position

Business retention and local supply chains

Economic development should begin with the businesses and producers already operating here. Town Hall should understand what is blocking expansion, where local purchasing is practical and how agriculture, food businesses, trades, institutions and retailers can create more value together.

  • Regular business-retention and expansion outreach
  • Clear escalation for municipal barriers
  • Lawful local-procurement opportunities
  • Better links among producers, restaurants, institutions and retailers
  • Public reporting on businesses retained, expanded or lost

Tourism, fishing, film and municipal assets

Review whether Port Hope receives fair value, covers real service costs and reinvests sensibly without making visitors or industry feel milked.

  • Film activity and location services
  • Fishing tourism, waterfront and boat-launch use
  • Major events and sponsorships
  • Tourism-linked municipal assets
  • Do not create new visitor or industry fees without a clear service-cost and economic-impact case

Clear rules, not blanket deregulation

Faster service cannot waive fire, structural, accessibility, drainage, environmental, heritage or neighbour protections. Town Hall should guarantee clarity and accountable timelines, not approval.

Responsibility

Who controls what

Jurisdiction sets the route to action. It does not end the conversation.

Port Hope controls

  • Municipal approvals, service standards, economic-development coordination and many fees
  • Municipal procurement and use of local assets
  • Tourism, events, downtown and film-support activities within local authority

Cooperation required

  • County, provincial and federal approvals and programs
  • Conservation authorities, utilities and regulators
  • Businesses, producers, education partners, tourism groups and investors

Measure progress

Residents should be able to check the result

  • Business openings, expansions, retention and local jobs
  • Approval times and files stalled by external agencies
  • Local procurement and local supply-chain participation
  • Downtown vacancies, film activity and tourism spending where official data exists
  • Agriculture participation and investor satisfaction

Keep reading

The same governing standards apply across the platform

Authority must be assigned clearly. Responsibility for the resident's experience must not disappear between institutions.

No wrong door. Show the work. Fair rules and meaningful recourse. One Port Hope. Change course when the facts change.

How I'll GovernStraight Answers

Help improve the platform

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