Norfolk County > Business > Economic Development > Economic Recovery Plan

Economic Recovery Plan

A Norfolk County Economic Recovery Plan (NCERP) was prepared in late 2020 with a task force, made up of community representatives, in response to the economic challenges and uncertainty resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. Council approved the plan with $250,00 of strategic funding which was leveraged into $915,000 of total economic recovery funding by the end of 2022 (e.g. staff secured additional grants/funds.)

Objectives

The Economic Recovery Plan included several actions related to these main objectives:

Theme

Actions

BUY Norfolk

Actions aimed at "Buy Local" and supporting local small businesses in efforts to increase sales.

BUILD Norfolk

Actions aimed at creating the conditions for continued growth of the business sector and the community. 

INNOVATE Norfolk

Actions aimed at developing innovative solutions to specific COVID-related business challenges. 

RECOVER Norfolk

Actions aimed at funding community-based not-for-profit organizations, to support industries that have been most impacted by COVID-19.

What we’ve achieved

  • 25 to 40% – length of time reduced for residents applying for building permits, zoning and zoning amendment reviews
  • 66% – length of time reduced for site plan approvals
  • $100,000 – value of the digital technology grant funds invested in the community
  • 700 – number of businesses that directly helped or participated in recovery efforts
  • 1,148 – orders received on Shop Norfolk and downloads of the Visit Norfolk App
  • 840 – number of people, businesses and groups who receive the monthly Economic Development Newsletter
  • 35% – number of immigrants who participated in area bus tours hired by local businesses
  • $90,000 – value of grants provided to local groups for downtown, arts and culture and agriculture stimulus

Task Force

The Norfolk County Economic Recovery Task Force was formed to help develop a strategy to assist the local economy in recovering from the significant impact of COVID-19.

Made up of residents with diverse sets of backgrounds and skills, the task force meets regularly to identify the key issues impacting local businesses, garner community feedback, assess potential funding opportunities, and brainstorm ways to support the local economy.

Thank you to our task force members:
  • Carl Atkinson, Chair
  • Anthony Massi
  • Claire Senko
  • Michelle Kloepfer
  • Trish Fournier
  • Staff Lead: Chris Garwood

Further reading: