Employment Lands and Investment Attraction Strategy Services

The vendor is required to provide employment lands and investment attraction strategy services to assess the current supply, condition, and marketability of employment lands across the county and its seven local municipalities.
1. Regional assessment
•    Review and analyze relevant economic development strategies and employment-related land use policies at the provincial, regional, and local levels.
2. Economic, employment, and real estate trend analysis
•    Assess macroeconomic factors affecting county.
•    Analyze employment growth trends and projections.
•    Identify key industry sectors with growth potential and assess labor availability.
•    Collect competitive real estate data for employment areas across state.
3. Employment lands and investment readiness assessment
•    Inventory and evaluate the status of employment lands (occupied, vacant, underutilized, designated, zoned).
•    Assess servicing status and access to infrastructure.
•    Document available information on servicing costs and timelines where feasible.
•    Create municipal-level profiles of employment areas, including business counts, employment density, land use, tax contributions, and development constraints.
•    Provide an overview of current official plan and zoning by-law designations and identify potential local municipal partner led official plan amendments or zoning by-law amendments that could enhance the development readiness of employment lands.
•    Identify assets that support business growth, such as: 
o    Educational institutions and key programs
o    Incubators and accelerators
o    Workforce development programs
o    Transportation infrastructure
o    Business costs (utilities, labor, real estate, taxes)
4. Target sector and subsector identification
•    Identify the types of industries that are the best fit for county and have strong potential to support local job growth and attract new investment.
•    Assess specific areas within those industries that are growing quickly and match the county’s strengths—based on local data, global trends, and past investment activity.
5. Strategy and policy recommendations
•    Develop strategies to support job growth and economic diversification.
•    Recommend policy changes to improve investment readiness and employment land use.
•    Recommend practical steps county can take to remain ready for new investment
6. Final strategy and action plan
•    Prepare a clear, actionable plan summarizing all findings and recommendations.
•    Include timelines, priority actions, and responsibilities.
•    Prepare materials for presentations to staff, planning growth steering committee, and county council.
- Marketing plan and materials
•    The optional deliverables, the consultant may propose a three-year investment attraction activity plan. 
•    This plan should include lead generation tactics, marketing recommendations, and implementation timelines. it is encouraged that the plan follows the smart framework (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-specific) and be presented in a matrix format outlining initiatives, key actions, KPIs, and timelines. 
•    The consultant may also include a proposal to identify and support the development of marketing materials such as digital and print brochures, advertising content, email campaigns, social media strategies, SEO optimization, and visual branding assets to support the county’s investment attraction efforts.

- Contract Period/Term: 3 years
- Questions/Inquires Deadline: September 16, 2025