INNISFAIL – The town will officially unveil its long-awaited Innisfail Economic Development Plan this week to the public, a living document designed for flexibility to meet challenges and opportunities that come over the next five years.
And of course, the biggest challenge in a century came frustratingly early. A month after 13 Ways Inc. was retained last February to create the plan, COVID arrived.
Even with the pandemic dominating everyone’s attention, 13 Ways, led by president Doug Griffiths, pushed on. Nine months later on Nov. 23 a final plan was presented and adopted by town council.
It’s an ambitious and comprehensive plan designed to boost the town’s fortunes from a once hidden sleepy prairie locale to a vibrant modern community where people not only want to live but others from across the region and beyond are eager to visit.
This Thursday (Dec. 10) at 4:30 p.m. Griffiths, along with Heather Thomson, the company’s consumer behaviour expert, are scheduled to facilitate a public presentation of the plan via Zoom.
"And not it's the time for action and time to get on with starting to implement these things so Innisfail can achieve all its full potential,” said Griffiths, whose company was retained at taxpayer cost of $47,500 to create the plan, and another $60,000 to build a new town website, enhance local branding, and develop a digital media library.
“Economic development is just not about having the lowest taxes and the least number of regulations.
“If you can attract people into your community for tourism experiences and to enjoy the quality of life, you need to add to the aesthetics and add to that social atmosphere because that is what people want.”
The town has tried economic development plans in the past, most recently through the work American Roger Brooks did for the town in 2015. However, no comprehensive plan or vision of any type was created as a follow up.
Over the past nine months 13 Ways, relying on extensive research and countless talks and meetings with local stakeholders, did create a plan that does not offer instant successes.
Instead, the plan is a clearly defined road map that can take the town to where it wants to go but only if everyone, especially key stakeholders, buy into it and above all, follow it up with action.
“The way 13 ways approached and presented this was very much as an action-orientated plan,” said Stuart Fullarton, the town’s manager of economic development and communications.
“That is what they heard from the stakeholders they engaged with over the course of its development, that folks did not want another plan that would just sit on the shelf and remain dormant.”
13 Ways went into the project with goals of creating a plan that would promote Innisfail as having a successful business environment, harnessing the community’s unique strengths and advantages, and keying on the best longstanding Albertan entrepreneurial spirit to enrich the local economy.
As a starting point, 13 Ways liked what they saw in Innisfail’s downtown where millions of dollars of infrastructure modernization have taken place since 2013. However, while much work has been done it was felt more can be done to take it to the next level. 13 Ways is recommending Main Street be enhanced to create a gathering place.
“I think ultimately that is what the whole plan reflects is either a gap or an opportunity,” said Fullarton. “They talk a lot about things like socialization, creating social spaces where people can gather, things that are appealing aesthetically.
"They very much emphasize that socialization creates business, and not the other way around. Get people downtown, create those social opportunities, and then they will patronize those businesses.”
The town has heard that message. Town council will be asked on Dec. 14 to approve the 2021 budget, which includes $50,000 for an urban design plan, and $80,000 for possible economic development staffing. Both budget requests are a direct result from the 13 Ways plan.
After the urban design plan, Fullarton said there are actionable items contained in the 13 Ways report the town could do, like enhanced lighting (twinkle lights) and interactive seating.
“The town does not yet know how this will look like but they will be asking stakeholders for ideas,” he said.
That’s a start, certainly, but what about the public buy-in into the entire plan that has a five-year lifespan? In two days, Griffiths and Thomson will make their pitch to the public.
Originally before the pandemic their style was to celebrate a plan launch with a big open house. That’s not feasible now. It has to be done via Zoom.
Coun. Gavin Bates said on Nov. 23 that many average citizens probably don’t even know what the town is doing on the economic development front, and with the pandemic in full force it was vitally important to make a big splash on the first try.
“Some people will say, ‘are you kidding? Is this what you guys will work on in a pandemic?’ I just know there is going to be some people with that frame of mind. We need to do our best job possible,” said Bates, unsure if enough people will take the time to go online for the launch of a local economic development plan.
“I don’t know how we blitz to get people on that thing. That is my biggest concern,” said Bates.
However, Griffiths countered that Innisfail was not unique with the challenges of getting the public engaged. He noted the town, with 13 Ways fully committed to helping, can again showcase the plan outdoors in the spring when the pandemic hopefully subsides.
While Griffiths reiterated it was important for the public to buy into the plan and get excited, he added it will take time. He emphasized to council that town officials have to engage the public at “every opportunity” and talk about what they are doing, “over and over again” to keep the message consistency in the forefront of people’s minds.
As for the pandemic, Griffiths reminded council members it’s only a temporary problem.
“Do you think the pandemic is going to last forever? It is going to go away. This is the plan for how we are going to grow and capitalize on it after the pandemic,” said Griffiths. “If anything, the pandemic has demonstrated how important community is, and local economics, and that is what this plan is going to capitalize on.
“When this is gone and it will be gone, this will be our plan for the future of this community to grow in.”
For more on the Innisfail Economic Development Plan visit the town website at
