Category: Business News

Leading Canadian food manufacturer Leclerc has announced the purchase of the former Procter & Gamble (P&G) factory at 1475 California Avenue in Brockville, an expansion of its North American operations that will see $100 million invested locally along with the creation of over 200 new jobs.

Leclerc, a Quebec City-based family-owned company established in 1905, plans to move the production of many of its nationally known products to Brockville. The City of the 1000 Islands and the greater St. Lawrence Corridor Economic Development Commission (SLCEDC) region will soon become home to famous treats like the Celebration Cookie, as well as 100 new jobs in year one, scaling up to a steady state of over 200 new jobs in year two and beyond.

“We have developed an excellent business relationship with the St. Lawrence Corridor Economic Development Commission and we are proud to benefit from their competence and expertise,” said Denis Leclerc, President of Leclerc Foods. “We are confident that this partnership will continue to be an asset that will facilitate our arrival in Brockville and ensure the success of our project.”

Leclerc is also investing an estimated $100 million in their new facility at the former P&G building in Brockville. This includes investing in capital equipment to make the new location a technological innovator in food production. The Government of Ontario is also supporting the Leclerc move to Brockville through the Eastern Ontario Development Fund. A total of $1.5 million will be provided to the company to assist with the creation of new jobs and technologies.

The arrival of Leclerc in the region will also have significant additional benefits. Burnbrae Farms, headquartered just north of Brockville in fellow SLCEDC municipality the Township of Elizabethtown-Kitley, will be Leclerc’s egg supplier. This will allow Burnbrae to deliver its goods to the new Leclerc plant in a matter of minutes. The end result will be a strengthened local economy, with businesses supporting each other.

“Attracting good jobs and good industries like Leclerc to our region is exactly what our goal has been all along with the Corridor, so this is a great day for all of our member municipalities,” said Corridor board chairman Shelley Bacon, of Northern Cables. “Adding this number of new jobs will boost the economy across the entire area, providing a great shot in the arm for all of our municipalities, from Front of Yonge in the west straight through to Edwardsburgh-Cardinal in the east.”

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Comments:

“I’m thrilled to announce our government’s contribution of $1.5 million from the Eastern Ontario Development Fund to help Biscuit Leclerc Ltd. locate in Brockville. Local investments in world-class companies will grow the economy, create solid, stable jobs, and demonstrate strength for our local communities in the pandemic recovery.” MPP Steve Clark (Leeds-Grenville-Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes), Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing

“Through the Regional Development Program, our government is making targeted investments in the province’s manufacturing sector to help create good, local jobs. We thank Biscuits Leclerc for investing in our province’s vibrant food manufacturing sector. This project is making a significant impact on the St. Lawrence Corridor regional economy by investing in Ontario’s talented workforce and creating the conditions for long-term economic growth.” MPP Victor Fedeli (Nipissing) Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation, and Trade

“The City of Brockville is very excited and proud to welcome Leclerc to our community. The economic investment and employment surge that will be created by Leclerc will bring a major boost to our economy. The city would like to express its thanks to Leclerc for choosing Brockville. We look forward to continuing to work with Leclerc as they set up and build their business here. The city would also like to thank the St. Lawrence Corridor Economic Development Commission for its hard work at bringing this major opportunity to Brockville. This truly shows the success of our regional partnership approach to economic development which will benefit our entire region.” Mayor Mike Kalivas, City of Brockville

“As a founding member of the St. Lawrence Corridor Economic Development Commission and as someone who worked with our team on this exciting project, I am thrilled to welcome Leclerc to our communities. Being able to attract such an iconic, family-owned Canadian company shows the importance of working jointly. We succeed when we work together. This is a testament to what the Corridor is doing—with the strong support of the provincial government—to boost our entire regional economy. And when we bring in a major employer like this, all of our member municipalities along the St. Lawrence River are winners.” Mayor Brett Todd, Town of Prescott/SLCEDC Board Member

“Attracting good jobs and good industries like Leclerc to our region is exactly what our goal has been all along with the Corridor. This is a great day for all six of our member municipalities.” David Beatty, CEO Canarm/SLCEDC Board Vice-Chairman/Brockville City Councillor

“We are so happy to see job creation in Eastern Ontario and Brockville, and to be able to support a company with deep roots in Canada. Across the entire country, we are seeing strong demand accelerate industrial asset values and rental rates upwards. It is extremely tight and challenging in Ontario and Quebec to find large format, immediately available opportunities. So we are very excited for Groupe Leclerc for securing this location to expand their Canadian operations, and we look forward to future collaborations with the St. Lawrence Corridor Economic Development Commission.” Kyle Hanna, Vice-Chairman, CBRE Limited

“This is great news for our entire region. We are replacing P&G with a fourth-generation, family-owned Canadian cookie and snack leader in Leclerc. A multinational food processing giant has recognized our price advantage, our location advantage, and most importantly, our people advantage. Here in the Corridor, we are competing and we are winning.” Charlie Mignault, Commissioner, St. Lawrence Corridor Economic Development Commission

For more information, contact:
Charlie Mignault
SLCEDC Commissioner
charlie@slcedc.com
613-893-2327

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About Leclerc

Leclerc is a Quebec City-based, privately owned fifth-generation company that was established in 1905 and is currently expanding rapidly in the US and Canada. Currently under the direction of Denis Leclerc, the company has sales in excess of $750MM, putting them squarely in the top 1% in Canada in terms of privately held corporate revenue generation. Their largest customers include Costco, Loblaws, Aldi Grocery Stores, Kroger, and HEB.

About the SLCEDC

The St. Lawrence Corridor Economic Commission (The Corridor) consists of the six municipalities of the City of Brockville and the Town of Prescott, and the Townships of Augusta, Edwardsburgh-Cardinal, Elizabethtown-Kitley, and Front of Yonge. Formed in 2017, the Corridor focuses on the attraction of new industrial and commercial employers to the region, increasing the quantity and quality of job opportunities for our residents, along with assisting our existing business to expand.

The City of Brockville and Caber Group are pleased to announce that they have reached an Agreement of Purchase and Sale for 36-46 King Street West, the former Woolworth’s building.

The Woolworth’s property is one of the most prominent sites in Brockville’s downtown, close to the main intersection of King Street and Courthouse Avenue. Constructed in the late 1950’s the existing building was for many years a Woolworth’s department store. This store closed in 1993 and the property went through several subsequent owners and uses. In 2004 the last tenant of the building left the property, and it has sat vacant since that time.

In 2019 Council set several goals for their term, which included an objective to “spur on development and consider a P3 approach to the Woolworth’s property”. Through 2019 and into 2020 the City held discussions with the then owners of the property. The City acquired the property in December 2020 with the intention of seeing this property redeveloped to come back into economic use and to support the growth and development of the downtown.

Early in 2021 Council directed staff to undertake a Request for Proposals for the property, with the RFP being issued in April 2021. The RFP generated interest from the development community but at the close of the RFP no formal bids were submitted. Staff continued to work with several developers and in November 2021 three developers were invited to submit Expressions of Interest for the property. In January 2022, two of these developers presented their proposals. Following these presentations, the City entered into an exclusive negotiating period with Caber Group. Throughout the spring of 2022 Caber and its design partners, IDEA Inc. – Integrated Design | Engineering & Architecture and Linebox Studios, undertook preliminary design work, environmental and structural investigations, and financial modelling of their re-development concepts.

Negotiations continued throughout the summer and earlier this month Council agreed to enter into an Agreement for Purchase and Sale of the property. The Agreement gives Caber Group up to a year to complete a Site Plan Agreement, at which time the deal will close; and following this the developer will have up to another year to commence construction.

“City Council are very pleased to make this announcement, the Woolworth’s site has been a priority for this Council and this agreement takes us one step closer to a major redevelopment of this site. The proposal Council has seen from Caber is exciting and will bring much needed residential and commercial space to our downtown.” – Mayor Kalivas

“Caber Group and our design partners at IDEA and Linebox Studios are thrilled to have the opportunity to be a part of the re-animation of Brockville’s Historic District. The Woolworth’s site provides unique potential to bring contemporary living and commercial space to downtown, while paying homage to King Street’s historical significance to the city and the Thousand Islands Region”. – Josh Gibson, Caber Group

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For additional information and interview requests, please contact:

Rob Nolan
Director Economic and Development Services
City of Brockville
613-342-8772 x4445

Josh Gibson
Managing Partner
Caber Group
613-795-4473

Brockville can add another 7th place finish to its bragging rights with the recent rankings from MacLean’s for “Best communities in Canada for great health care 2019”. The rankings award points for communities that spend the least amount of time on waiting lists, as well as how many family doctors, specialists, and doctor’s offices are available per capita, and finally if there is an emergency room within an hour’s drive.

This recent ranking is a testament to the quality of care offered by all of Brockville’s local health care providers, from primary care to emergent care.

“I was unfortunate enough to break my wrist this past winter, but it did give me a chance to experience the emergency room at Brockville General Hospital (BGH) first hand and I was pleasantly surprised to find virtually no wait time to be triaged and taken in to X-ray. Of course nobody enjoys a trip to the emergency room, but knowing you will receive top care when you need it really gives you peace of mind.” Said Kendra Lorimer, local patient and Economic Development Coordinator for the City of Brockville.

“Good healthcare requires a system approach,” shares Nick Vlacholias, President and Chief Executive Officer of BGH. “Our hospital is one part of a strong and vibrant local health system which puts our patients and family members at the centre. We have made great strides to be recognized as the seventh best in Canada, but we know there is so much more that we could do, together, to deliver the best healthcare experience. We are committed to working with our staff, physicians, volunteers and partners to continue to meet the unique needs of our community.”

With nearly a dozen primary care teams across the Leeds Grenville area, the largest is the Upper Canada Family Health Team. The Health Team is comprised of a group of health care professionals including two Family Health Organizations, the Brockville Family Health Organization and the Thousand Island Family Health Organization. These teams provide integrated primary care at ten locations across the community.

The approach of Upper Canada Family Health Team allows the physicians in their network to work collaboratively to provide comprehensive and accessible health care to their patients and families. Their Coordinated Care Planning Program has become an integral part of their care model and spans almost all of their programs. The Coordinated Care Planning program assists with closing any gaps when a patient moves from one provider to another, allows for faster follow-up, and helps reduce the likelihood of readmission to hospital. As the population continues to age in Brockville and across Canada, this coordinated approach is integral to delivering continued improvements to the patient experience and reducing wait times.

The hospital is also preparing for future health care needs of the area’s growing and aging population.

“As the health care needs of our community evolves and expands, we must also grow to meet those needs,” says Vlacholias. “Our Redevelopment Project will bring all hospital services under one roof while making key renovations to our current site. Furthermore, the tower will add an additional 22 beds, bringing our overall bed count to over 160. Our Redevelopment Project will position us well to continue to serve our Leeds Grenville community well into the future.”

Brockville General Hospital’s Phase II Redevelopment Project will bring all inpatient programs and services, including those offered at the Garden Street site, on to one campus at the Charles Street site. This includes the Palliative Care, Restorative and Rehabilitation Services, Complex Continuing Care, and Inpatient Mental Health programs. Patient occupancy is expected in late spring 2020.

This project, which includes the addition of a five-storey patient tower, builds on the Hospital’s commitment to healthcare, and may even contribute to Brockville moving up a few pegs in the rankings.

This health care ranking is hot on the heels of last year’s similar seventh place finish on Expedia’s Most Active Cities in Canada. When taken together, the two rankings indicate the high quality of life that Brockville residents appreciate and the commitment by community members to enjoy a healthy, active lifestyle. Recreation and health care are two primary considerations when someone is considering a new community to move to and Brockville residents should be proud of this latest recognition.

To read more about the MacLean’s ranking, check out their article.

Since May 1^st, 2018, the City of Brockville has been collecting Municipal Accommodation Tax (MAT) from all establishments providing transient accommodation. This tax only applies to transient accommodation rentals of less than 30 days within the City of Brockville.

There are two established taxation rates, depending on the type of accommodation being provided:

• Hotel, Motel, Inn, Resort, Hostel, or Dwelling Unit: 4% of the purchase price
• Bed & Breakfast Establishments: $4.00 per night

All MAT funds collected are split between the Destination Marketing Organization (50%) and eligible tourism entities (50%). An eligible tourism entity is defined as a non-profit entity whose mandate includes the promotion of tourism in Ontario or in a municipality.

City of Brockville Bylaw 020-2018 and Bylaw 046-2018 govern the collection and distribution of MAT funds. The bylaws are both in compliance with the information established in “Ontario Regulation 435/17 Transient Accommodation Tax”.

As an eligible transient accommodation provider doing business and/or facilitating business transactions within the boundaries of the City of Brockville, you will be obliged by law to collect and remit MAT on all rooms sold for overnight accommodation. Revenues generated from other services, including but not limited to such things as meeting room rentals, food and beverage, and room service, will be excluded from the MAT.

Each accommodation provider in the municipality that is required to collect the tax shall include on every invoice or receipt, for the purchase of transient accommodation, a separate item for the amount of tax on transient accommodation imposed on the purchase, and the item shall be identified as “Municipal Accommodation Tax”.

Each accommodation provider shall provide the municipality with:

• A monthly Remittance Form which shall include a certification by an officer of the Participant certifying the amount of Accommodation Tax collected.
  • Municipal Accommodation Tax Remittance Form
  • Municipal Accommodation Tax Remittance Form for Bed and Breakfasts
• A cheque payable to The Corporation of the City of Brockville to the attention of Emily MacKenzie.

If you have any questions about the Municipal Accommodation Tax, please click here to contact Emily MacKenzie.