Local businesspeople are being invited to join the Town of Westlock mayor Ralph Leriger for a morning of breakfast and bonding.
The second annual Mayor’s Breakfast, which goes Oct. 26 at Memorial Hall, is intended to bring local businesses together for both networking and to organize an economic strategy for 2017.
“It’s an opportunity to work on our relationship with the entire community, especially the business community,” said Leriger.
“Last year we laid our council’s strategic plan, and all of the goals and steps involved. As well, we have a number of companies make presentations.”
Presenters for this year are still being ironed out.
“Our theme this year is economic prosperity as a regional responsibility. So we’re really emphasizing that for an entire region to prosper you need to have common goals and plans and pull the same direction. You need to lay out what the municipalities are trying to do as part of their collaboration efforts.”
The breakfast will also be an opportunity for residents to provide input on an upcoming regional collaboration study that will be conducted between the municipalities of the Town of Westlock, Westlock County and the Village of Clyde.
“(The study) will look at six areas of studies and make recommendations on if there are opportunities to have more efficient delivery of services.
“(It will) look at other areas, how they’re doing things, and then make recommendations to councils. Areas like recreation, protective services, economic development, our commissions and the airport.
“The people that will come (to the breakfast), those are the people that are driving things happening in our region. So it’s a good opportunity to introduce our consultants to our stakeholders.”
Tickets are $15. Last year about 80 people came out for the breakfast and Leriger hopes that number climbs to 120 for this edition.
