Business View City & Municipal | August 2022

29 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL VOLUME 3, ISSUE 7 critical. As the regional growth agency, we play that coordinating role for our region and serve our community in a holistic and authentic way. Bringing key people to the table to strategically move the Saint John region forward is how we will reach our 10-year outcomes.” Hicks insists this is “a big shift” for the area’s economic development. Traditionally, they’ve operated more as a mosaic of neighboring but not bonded communities. “It was a very bumpy landscape, I’ll declare that out of the gate,” Hicks admits. “But we have come a long way in our first 20 months and we are seeing the benefits of working together as a collaborative region.” According to Hicks, a “we/them scenario” wasn’t conducive to growth and development in the long run. And it’s when the region came together as a collective and agreed that Saint John is ENV I S ION SA INT JOHN Paula Hicks, CEO Jillian MacKinnon, VP of Marketing more than a city – it’s a truly unique region with a strong history and a shared vision for future growth – that there was a shift to move forward. “Through acknowledging that if we wanted our children and grandchildren to stay here and to have options for a career here, we needed to have a really strong focus on growth so anyone could avail of that. Not working together ran the risk of taking that choice away from people we care about. I think that’s how people got there.” Comprised of the City of Saint John and the neighboring towns of Grand-Bay Westfield to the west, and Rothesay, Quispamsis, Hampton, and the Village of St. Martins to the northeast, the broad geographical area targeted by the agency will benefit from improved alignment and greater access to capital to support transformational regional projects. For the first time in history, regional mayors are signing joint letters of support for strategic opportunities that