Business View Civil Municipal - Sept 2023

127 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL VOLUME 4, ISSUE 9 TECUMSEH, ONTARIO complete community,” explains Misek-Evans. Nurturing Business Growth and Residential Development Diving deeper into the business sphere, Misek- Evans shares further insights about the town’s nurturing relationship with new businesses, particularly those in the pipeline for 2024. She expands upon the significant role of the Business Improvement Association (BIA) and Invest Windsor-Essex (IWE) in attracting new businesses and developing relationships, as well as the beautification of the district. “We partner as a town with the BIA and community organizations through event assistance, beautification and business attraction,” she says, through branding, streetscaping, in-kind services and event support, like the August Corn & Music Festival sponsored by the local Optimist Club. Turning attention to Tecumseh’s industrial focus, Mayor McNamara steps in to share his enthusiastic vision. Echoing his earlier statements, he highlights the global interest in Southwestern Ontario, especially in the wake of Volkswagen establishing a Gigafactory in St. Thomas and the ongoing construction of the LG/Stellantis EV battery plant, called NextStar across the street in neighboring Windsor. “We feel very strongly that economic expansion and diversification is a priority for the town’s industrial areas,” Mayor McNamara states, setting the stage for his detailed exposition. With an impressive forecast of approximately 3.9 million square feet of new and expanded industrial space mainly in the Oldcastle area, the town’s industrial hub, Tecumseh is primed