The County of Grande Prairie has been experiencing significant growth over the years and recognizes that it requires careful planning to provide infrastructure and services that attract and retain businesses. The purpose of the County Growth and Economic Development Strategy is to understand the current challenges and opportunities and to establish an implementation strategy for moving forward towards sustainable growth. This requires a thorough understanding of the social, economic, governance and environmental factors that influence how the County moves forward. While the plan looks at the overall County, there is also a specific focus on the surrounding Hamlets and related market areas.
The primary objectives of the Growth and Economic Development Strategy are achieving the following:
- Understand the status of the County with respect to land uses, infrastructure, economic, and social considerations.
- Understand the current drivers and inhibitors of growth.
- Identify actions that could provide greater opportunity for the development of existing communities within the County.
- Form the basis for input and feedback in conjunction with other County documentation on the forthcoming Upper Peace Regional Plan under the Provincial Land Use Framework.
- Develop an implementation plan on actions required to lead the County towards greater economic sustainability.
Associated Engineering is providing the engineering review of the infrastructure required to sustain and enable growth, which includes major transportation infrastructure, existing sanitary treatment facilities and pipes, water supply and delivery, stormwater management, and telecommunications relating to cell phone coverage and access to wireless technology. We are also undertaking a high-level desktop exercise to map environmental considerations and provides some analyses in terms of the potential climate change impacts.