The visual appearance of the downtown core proved to be a hot topic for Councillor Barry Cunningham who once again raised the issue at City Council last month.
Community engagement on a range of issues also proved to be a theme for the month with a range of surveys and calls to action in the business community.
Northern Savings was busy seeking the opinion on the state of business from local business owners in the region. CityWest was seeking out photos for the annual phone book publication and the Chamber of Commerce was bringing together the business community to push back on plans from the Federal government on taxation.
As the month came to an end, transportation became a theme for many with Greyhound Canada putting in an application to cease its passenger service across Northern BC.
A timeline for a new fitness club and the success of the marina facility at Cow Bay also made for some of the news flow for the month.
Our review of the Commercial and economic scene in the region for the months of June and July can be found below:
August
Northern Savings once again is looking for the products of local residents to be used as part of their community outreach program, outlining how those on the North Coast and Haida Gwaii can participate in the program.
Concerns over proposed tax changes from the Federal Government found the Prince Rupert and District Chamber of Commerce leading local business owners in expressing their thoughts on the issue.
Transportation issues in the Northwest are back to the top of the news cycle, with a move from Greyhound Canada to apply to end its passenger bus service across Northern British Columbia.
August saw the Prince Rupert based communication company CityWest launch their quest for a new phone book cover for the Prince Rupert area, the August call for submissions and voting process produced the winning entry from Guy Carignan announced in September.
A business program hosted by TRICORP had some development plans in motion through August with the First Nations business organization highlighting their Aboriginal Business Equity Program.
The opening date is getting closer for the latest Fitness Club to join the Prince Rupert listings, with Anytime Fitness targeting an October opening.
The ongoing debate over the appearance of some of the downtown commercial spaces once again made it to Prince Rupert City Council, as Councillor Barry Cunningham once again brought the issue to the attention of the city's elected officials.
Council also addressed a request from Councillor Joy Thorkelson, sending a letter to the Federal Fisheries Minister seeking adjacency for the local fishing industry, all in hopes of creating more employment at local fish processor plants.
The ongoing struggles for the local industry were highlighted in August as shore workers continued to see low hours in a troubles salmon season.
To the east in Terrace, Sight and Sound made a shift in direction, selling off their electronics and Telus business to Andre's Electronics, while holding on to the musical instrument side of the business where they will continue to serve the community.
Some inspirational youth in the Northwest were honoured by Northern Savings over the summer, with the financial institution announcing the successful students that are part of their Inspire Awards.
Northern Savings was also busy in seeking comments from the local business community, hosting an online survey to take the pulse of the business sector of the Northwest.
The next big thing for CityWest could be additional connectivity to the south as the communications company owned by the City of Prince Rupert awaits a decision on their application for funding for a subsea fibre connection.
The summer of 2017 proved to be a successful one for the City owned Cow Bay Marina which saw strong numbers and some high profile visitors this year.
Just to the east of the Cow Bay Marina, Prince Rupert's long established Yacht Club continued to show progress on their rebuild of their facility on the Prince Rupert waterfront.
Business and Community groups worked together in August to make for another successful Fraser Street Block Party on the 19th.
You can keep up to date on the ebb and flow of the Prince Rupert commercial scene through 2017 from our Taking Stock tracker archive which can be reviewed here.
We imagine we probably have missed a few here or there, so if you know of a business having opened, or seen the Going out of business sign appear somewhere in the area, drop us a line at our email account of northcoastreviewpr@yahoo.ca
Or send us a short message through our twitter feed of @CharlesHays
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