156 Business View - May 2015
INFRASTRUCTURE
mountains – and we have miles of recreational oppor-
tunities around us,” said Mike Schwirtz, who became
the town’s chief administrative officer in October. “The
work/life balance we offer is unparalleled.”
That refocused strategy has the full backing of a re-
vamped town council that swept into office in 2013,
including Rob Mackin, the local business owner and
mayor who was elected in November of that year as
well.
“It’s an untapped potential that Hinton has,” Mackin
said.
“We’ve got a diverse economy. It’s not a one-horse
town. We’ve got the lifestyle and a high quality of life.
We are focusing on selling that opportunity and get-
ting people to recognize what we have and encourag-
ing them to come here and experience it.”
The existence of solid and relatively new town infra-
structure has enabled the future focus, he said, which
began with an internal review of processes in planning
and development to make sure the approach to build-
ing and developing is easily accessible and that the
community-facing mindset is one based on customer
service.
Participation in a national project through which Telus
is making fiber-optic technology available to all homes
in targeted communities is enabling out-of-the-box
thinking that could move commuting residents to Hin-
