You told us. 
As expected, the vast majority of you enjoy living and working here....but from the 120+ returns, a significant number state this is not a good place to operate a business...AND more than HALF of all responses added some great "comments." Before we get to those, let's take a quick look at the Yes or No results:
1. Is Owen Sound a good place to live?
Only 4% of you said 'No.' Overwhelming 'Yes!'
2. Is Owen Sound a good place to work?
There was a 9% 'No' response.
3. Is Owen Sound a good place to play.
There were 9% who said 'No.'
4. Is Owen Sound a good place to operate a business?
About 25% of all member business owners/managers who responded said Owen Sound was NOT a good place to operate a business. Further review shows that 33% of business owner reponses were "No."
Chamber media releaseLetter by Michael Warren Response to Warren letter by Paul Neville
Just what did all of
you "comment?"...
(views expressed are those of our individual members and may or may not reflect those of the Chamber)
'As a young person who has recently lived in Toronto, Calgary & Vancouver, my perspective is that while Owen Sound may lack a certain youthful energy, it makes up for that with easy access to parks and recreational activities, low cost of living, increasing numbers of festivals and arts events, and community-mindedness. I think many people leave the city after high school and return to raise their families in their late 20's, early 30's. With more and more industry leaving the city (and Canada), I think the city needs to focus on meaningful job creation in order to allow young families to succeed.”
“Depends on the business. Good if you extend out thru technology to larger population. Good if you wish not to be too busy. Good if you have other reliable sources of income.”
“The city has demonstrated little or no fiscal responsibility. The taxes are outrageously high and they have no realistic understanding of economic development or tourism.”
“Without a solid future that fits into the global, national, provincial, and local scene...Owen Sound will be lucky to maintain a status quo. Growth is much more than dealing with taxes and short-sighted civic strategies by the city. We need to embrace a regional community development strategy DESPITE the feeling that it is hard to do... it HAS TO BE DONE.”
"I only say this (no to ‘Is Owen Sound a good place to operate a business?”) as the taxes keep going up and the services keep going down and with this new 38 million dollar plus Rec Centre going in the taxes will be even more and soon no one will be able to afford to live in Owen Sound. Unfortunately a few spoke for the masses and it is a little late to shut the barn door after the horse has already gotten out and has a head start. Owen Sound is not business friendly. They scare away more business than they let in."
"Even though my business is based out of Wiarton, Owen Sound has offered me scope to further my endeavours. I just love it up here."
"These are hard yes and no questions! Collecting our stories would provide richer and more meaningful data."
“Hate the garbage tags; pay thousands of dollars in property taxes and still have to pay for garbage - at least one free bag a week should be the standard.”
“Owen Sound is a beautiful community with potential, but it is run by short sighted unqualified people with no business sense. Our workforce has dwindled in the past few years, without any direction or hope of any new development or job creation opportunities to turn things around. The little development being approved forces these businesses through a gruelling unfriendly acidic atmosphere for approvals. The city has also shown that they lack the experience and knowledge to oversee their own development projects, putting a soon-to-come added financial burden of raised taxes to pay for their ignorance. Recruitment to find qualified volunteers should be made to the retired professionals living in this community, such as retired engineers, architects and financial professionals.”“I haven’t operated a business in O.S. but I do believe that city council is an obstacle in some cases and property and business taxes, including DIA charges appear to be too high.”
“An excellent area to reside and to relocate as it offers a full range of activities and services anyone would require plus the fresh air and “The Sound.”
“OS is a good place to work for those who can secure employment.”
“Owen Sound is "Mean to Business" They need to get their fiscal act in order at City Hall. e.g. Garbage collection every two weeks and yet no layoffs. We have a Mayor who is totally out of touch with reality. She is proud of the fact that there have been no City layoffs?? What is she thinking? “ “Not sure what you can/will do with this open ended style survey?”
“Businesses in Owen Sound do not seem to want to take chances and change service providers, no matter what the service offered is, they seem to suffer from status quo-itis. What worked before still works now, even though is some cases this attitude is costing them thousands of dollars a year.”
“I chose Owen Sound as a relocation destination after being victim of an abandoned marriage at mid-life. I had a short-list of necessities: water location, a transportation system, a central good library, and so on. The job market was not as strong as I had anticipated but, fortunately, I was able to found my own business to counteract that shortage. I received municipal, provincial and federal support for which I am most grateful. My firm is now approaching its third year of operation and has a good base. I have acquired over 50 local customers and am focusing on my keynote service of (blanked for privacy). Owen Sound was a good choice and supportive in all the facets of a good place to live and work and play!”
“Good effort to try out the questionnaire-- however, providing some context for the survey questions would help- this looks like a test rather than real questions that are very serious- they are more like motherhood and apple pie. The questions need to be more focused and at least another option added- otherwise it is limited in value as a tool”
“Maybe some types of business is good. Mine is not but I love it and will not give up.”
“I love living in Owen Sound.”
“There needs to be more waterfront development and use. Smaller towns around us have more beaches, better harbours, more waterfront parks and get more revenue from boaters and other water activities.”
“Owen Sound has the best of all worlds. It\'s a friendly small town, nestled in a beautiful natural setting which offers just about every outdoor activity there is. For those who need their \"Big City Fix\", a drive of 2 - 2.5 hours in pretty much any direction should satisfy their craving! “
“Property taxes are far too high and City Hall is not friendly to business.”
“Taxes are too high.”
"There is always a tremendous amount of potential to turn this from a simple 'ok kind of yes' to a definite 'YES'."
“Having lived in Owen Sound for 6 years and now living in a more country-like area we do prefer where we live now - taxes are much lower, no traffic, no charge for our water to name a few. However, that being said, Owen Sound is still a great place to have our business. We also do our shopping, banking, going to restaurants, etc. in Owen Sound as everything is readily available.”
“More needs to be done to attract new business and people to Owen Sound, Owen Sound has the potential to one of the greatest places in Canada to be, but its not, and the path we are on will ensure it never will be.”
“I enjoy Owen Sound very much..”
“Too many low paying jobs. Not enough high paying jobs. Too many part time/contract jobs. Not enough full-time jobs. Property and Business taxes way too high.”
“It will always be a regional governmental centre and a great place for tourism, but we need our industrial base restored. City should take a hard look at a long range plan to reduce mun. taxes.”
“Caring community , awesome creative, musical, artistic talent...hidden gems of business that deal globally...amazing outdoors - trails, beaches, gardens & parks “
“high taxes - old business sense of entitlement “
“Needs to have more people living and paying taxes IN OWEN SOUND !”
“Pertaining to my answer of "no" to the above, there is not enough work here, for University graduates. There is not enough diversity. The main employer seems to be health care and teaching, and of course retail. We need a university here and a place where people can apply for good jobs. We do not need a recreation centre; we need something to sustain the economy for a long time. The community boundaries need to be expanded to accommodate housing, if this was to occur. In addition, to work here is not good because people are not trained to be good managers, in this area. The hospital and the loss of good doctors due to mismanagement is case in point. I have experienced very poor management at the county level here in Owen Sound (Grey County), and farther south, with municipalities and quasi-government sectors. The Conservation Authority here is an exception; they have jobs for students and they are self-sustaining, with their properties and salaries, and not a major burden on taxpayers. I have applied to 250 agencies here, to get a part time job to sustain myself while I run my business. I have a university education. I have not had one call back. It is actually very shocking. Unless things change, my husband and I will encourage our children, after post-secondary education, to go other places for employment. The Service Ontario building is another example. I went on line when it first was built to see what government jobs were "open" to the public. I did not find one that was posted. They appear to be all internal moves, by provincial employees. I would be willing to receive any additional information to correct what I have said above, but what I have experienced with management sectors in this area with government agencies, makes me realize that there is a) a lack of good human resource departments and upgraded managers b) a lack of accountability from the hospital administration and from the county and municipal administrations. There are too many volunteer boards for accountability. The board of directors for anything in this region (any agency) should be paid positions. It would open up many opportunities and would enhance management practices. Lastly, the government sectors that once employed people here (MNR, MPAC, as examples) have been downsized and relocated to Midhurst or Toronto, and so no jobs open up. Thank you for reading my comments.”
“Love Owen Sound, wouldn’t want to live, play or have a business in any other city!”
“I love living in the Owen Sound area. Have lived and worked here now since I moved here in 1984 from the Niagara Peninsula. I had never been in Owen Sound until then.”
“Just moved here from Brantford and cannot believe how incredible beautiful the area is and how kind and friendly people are!”
“Owen Sound council must be careful on how many businesses they allow in so that there isn’t to much competition which will make owning a business here not as profitable. Too much retail and not enough industry etc is not good for the local economy as most retail jobs are in the minimum wage range.”
“I live in a rural setting and do not enjoy living in a city environment. Jobs are limited and there are no new business/ companies interested in our area. That itself makes things very limited.”
“City needs to develop the brown space in the harbour, so much potential. I grew up in Kingston where we were known for our beautiful waterfront, and could enjoy it.”
“Our commercial tax base is out of line compared to neighbouring cities. Owen Sound needs to address the cost of services ex. police and fire. Too much overhead. Lets combine fire services with inter townships.”
“Owen Sound gets points for quality of life and overall amenities. Though I am involved in a business venture in Owen Sound, I put a 'n/a' in the last category as I cannot yet go to one extreme or the other on Owen Sound's business friendliness. I have found the City's approach to be unfriendly at times (not in all cases, just some). However, the DIA and Chamber have been collaborative.”
“The first 3 are a definite yes. The small market makes the 4th yes weaker.”
“TAXES IN THE CITY ARE EXPENSIVE.”
“Pretty vague survey. Residential taxes too high. For my business it has been good, but most if it is my doing. Hospitality industry is poor as are properly run restaurants.”
“I live here, my family lives here, my son-in-law operates a business here we all play here. we all love Owen Sound or we wouldn't be here.”
“Slightly behind the times with respect to innovation, forward thinking and opportunity. But the positives far outweigh these negatives. Good place for pioneers to do things nobody else has done.”
“Owen Sound has a lot of potential but we need to strive towards our future. Be proactive with issues instead of reacting to issues.”
“if the taxes were less then it would be a better place for businesses. Also, City is not forward thinking in approving new/additional business development i.e. Wal-Mart”
“A good place to operate a business despite high taxes and city hall red tape.”
“with the city's tax rates and there latest tax increase hidden in the water bills (13%) for commercial business owners it is time business owners made some noise, we are some of the HIGHEST taxed in CANADA , makes relocating your business outside Owen Sound very attractive !! The City is out of control and led by people who have no clue “
“For certain industries it is a good place to operate a business, but there are too much red tape for new businesses to start up.”
“...but only in comparison to other places. If you are poor, this is not a great place to be, not a lot of services, not a lot of options. If you\'re sick, not a lot of local medical help, too far to travel for intensive medical procedures.. Living wages are also hard to come by, while the minimum wage has crept up a little, it\'s still too low to support the needs of a family, or the local economy. It's a great place to live, and there are worse places, but there is room for improvement.”
“Taxes extremely high for this region especially for small businesses. *(and our local wages) We need to encourage development...bring and keep jobs in our area.”
“...little cooperation from the city and taxes on commercial property too high.”
“Owen Sound is a great place to live, work and play but it could be an amazing place to live if: we improved our downtown area, attracted pleasure boaters to our waterfront, made the downtown a destination place with restaurants, patios, live music. Owen Sound needs to stop putting health clinics and office buildings on our waterfront and use that land to the fullest. No one cares what the view is when they are going to the doctor’s office. “
“weird survey?”
“Owen Sound is a beautiful place to live. We are surrounded by beautiful nature and water. Owen Sound does not have a lot to offer in the way of entertainment and expanded dining culture.”
“Opportunities and growth are limited in the Owen Sound area I not sure if that is a bad or good thing as it depends on the stage of your life.”
“Duncan McLellan Ball Diamonds are terrible. Smaller centres have far superior facilities. It's too bad.”
“lack of opportunities for young professionals - very little vision from city council to grow industry base - we are bleeding youth and talent, soon we will be like Collingwood - catering to cottagers and seniors and no one will be able to afford to have their own houses. Manufacturing will be gone.”
“I cannot comment on operating a business as I am not directly involved in that aspect of employment. I do support our locally operated businesses as much as I can. “
“I love Owen Sound, I really do. I live here, and I was born here, and I work here too. Even went to WHSS!”
“We live outside of Owen Sound and our business is doing quite well. However, we feel Owen Sound is not attracting business to the area that offer better paying jobs. Our industrial area has decreased and any new retail is being objected to unless it is downtown. “
“Owen Sound is a fabulous place to do all life activities! We do not know how lucky we are. We should be very proud of our community and respond favourably to all inquiries, whether business or pleasure.”
“Not a 'business friendly' town.”
Thank-you! Watch for our next survey...coming soon.