Business View - January 2015 109
century, though those numbers have stayed stable
– with changes only measured in low single-digit per-
centages – since the federal census of 2001.
But thanks to a new municipal focus on economic de-
velopment, town officials said, those days of sleepy
steadiness are already becoming a thing of the past.
“We have a strong economy and growth is definitely on
Hinton’s horizon,” said Wendy Jones, the town’s man-
ager of capital projects and construction. “Preparing
for and stimulating growth is part of our strategic plan
for our community.
“The population has been stable for what amounts
to 25 years, and we’re now opening ourselves up to
new business opportunities – whether they are rec-
reational, tourist, manufacturing, resource-based or
something else. That’s our goal here in the next sev-
eral years; to continue to grow and diversify.”
Indeed, though oil and gas, forestry and mining have
been economic stalwarts of the community since its
founding, Jones and her administrative colleagues
are now making concerted efforts to promote Hinton
across North America as a potential home for tech-
nology companies, training centers or any other busi-
nesses looking to offer their employees a high quality
of life.
The town’s population was 9,405 at the time of the
2001 federal census before rising 3.5 percent to
9,738 in 2006. It then dipped slightly to 9,640 when
the count was made again in 2011. Overall, despite
fluctuations in the resource industry, Hinton’s popula-
tion has remained unfazed, due to in part, by the eco-
nomic diversity the town benefits from.
“We’re about 20 kilometers from the base of the
Rocky Mountains, so when you look out to the west,
that’s what you’ll see every day – the snow-capped
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