Thunder Bay’s delegation to the Association of Municipalities of Ontario conference has returned with positive thoughts and ambitions for the city’s future.
One of the topics was the city’s economy which Councillor Shelby Ch’ng says includes a second company looking at using the city as a lithium hub, which sparked the interest and support of Economic Development Minister Vic Fedeli.
“We’re talking not in the millions, but in the billions of dollars. So he said one plant could easily produce a billion dollars worth of processing, we’re possibly looking at two, and then with spin off and ancillary businesses that are going to be supporting that.”
Officials have also come to realize there won’t be much or any competition from within Ontario for this endeavor, but there could be some from the United States as it has similar options and its just an extra 45 minutes away from Thunder Bay.
Members of the delegation hinted at further developments coming within the next few months.
Recently Avalon Advanced Materials has made some moves in the Thunder Bay area, including the purchase of the former Abitibi mill on the north side of the city where it intends to build a lithium processing plant.
These developments have reinvigorated hopes of bolstering the city’s population and helping hit housing targets.
The Ford Government has set a target for Thunder Bay of 2,200 new homes by 2031, which Ch’ng is confident the city could now meet.
“We are poised to really take Thunder Bay up an number of notches, we’re not talking one or two percent growth, we’re talking major growth.”
During the Association of Municipalities of Ontario conference Premier Doug Ford announced a $1.2 billion fund that would be distributed to municipalities that demonstrate progress in meeting provincial housing targets.
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