In October 2020, the Beaumont Chamber of Commerce, with the Alberta Chamber of Commerce, conducted a survey to Beaumont Businesses on Municipal Red Tape and Business Supports to determine the challenges that businesses are facing that make it difficult to either grow or succeed.  We shared Beaumont business results of this survey with Beaumont Mayor, Council and Administration and on December 3, 2020 and we held a Municipal Red Tape Roundtable with Mayor and Council to discuss these results.  We are now working to collaborate with the City of Beaumont to remove the barriers that many businesses face.

Interested in contributing to these efforts? The Beaumont Chamber is always looking for valuable members with unique situations. We encourage you to share the barriers you have faced so we can be your voice as we advocate on your behalf.  Email us at info@beaumontchamber.ca. 

Municipal Red Tape and Business Supports Survey Results
 

Municipal Red Tape Round Table Recording

After being contacted by many Beaumont Businesses regarding concerns over non-residential taxation increases over the past 3 years, the Beaumont Chamber of Commerce created a Municipal Budget and Taxation Committee to focus on taxation and fiscal issues affecting the local business community.  The Beaumont Chamber presented the committee's findings to Beaumont Council on November 24th where we recommended that:

• the City of Beaumont focuses on attracting the right kind of businesses, such as large business and chains, to maintain small tax increases; and
• the City of Beaumont develop an exit strategy for when a business closes so the City can use that data to develop a business retention strategy. We also recommend that the data be made available to the Chamber as we support the local economic growth; and
• we understand and support the need to develop a taxation policy on revenue split that would govern the amount of revenue the City of Beaumont would like to collect in residential tax vs non-residential tax. Because of the impact a taxation policy will have on our business community, the Beaumont Chamber requests that they be included in and consulted with on the development of a taxation policy. 
   

2021 Municipal Budget Recommendations
 

November 24, 2020 Council Presentation

The City of Beaumont considered our presentation, and it was further discussed at Council Budget Deliberations on November 26, 2020.  The City also conducted a survey to gather the public's input on the economic future of Beaumont and we look forward to receiving the results of this survey. 

Since our presentation the Council, we have been provided information on the number of closures in Beaumont over the past 2 years, we have been assured that the City is taking steps to evolve their retention efforts and that the City's CRM is being updated to allow for new reporting and analysis on business closures. We look forward to receiving this data and collaborating with the City of Beaumont on a business retention strategy. 

Through our Municipal Red Tape Survey, we identified that a major barrier to businesses is signage, which falls into the area of bylaws and zoning.  After being contacted by many Beaumont businesses on differing issues related to Signage, the Chamber has decided to investigate this further and we hope to collaborate with the City on solutions that will remove these barriers. All signage regulations and permit information for signage within the Beaumont City limits, can be found on the City of Beaumont's Our Zoning Blueprint webpage.


If you are facing any barriers or issues related to signage, zoning or bylaws, please email us at info@beaumontchamber.ca. 

The Beaumont Chamber was contacted by businesses located along 50th Avenue over concerns of the disruption to their business should the 50th Avenue Streetscape project move forward.  On June 19, 2020 the Beaumont Chamber shared these concerns with the City of Beaumont along with a request that if Phase III of the 50th Avenue Streetscape project is approved in the 2021 Budget, that the City of Beaumont with support from the Beaumont Chamber, bring all affected parties back to the table so that the impacts are understood and alternatives fully researched.

50th Avenue Streetscape Phase III Letter to the City - June 19, 2020