Notes from Eastern HRM Strategic Planning Process Meeting July 14, 2014
Location: Memory Lane Heritage Village, Lake Charlotte
Community Representatives:

Verna Higgins, Musquodoboit Valley Tourism Association

Sandy Moser, Sheet Harbour and Area Chamber of Commerce and Civic Affairs

Deirdre Dwyer, Musquodoboit Harbour and Area Community Development Association

Gordon Hammond, Lake Charlotte Area Heritage Society

Karen Traversy, Lake Charlotte Area Heritage Society
Advisors: Robyn Webb, Director, Labour Market Development, Greater Halifax Partnership (GHP)
Darrell Hirtle, Community Developer, HRM Volunteer Services
Background: This meeting followed a conference call on May 23, 2014 which itself was a follow-up to an
Eastern Shore public strategic planning meeting held in Oyster Pond on March 31, 204 funded by ACOA,
HRM and GHP and summarized in a report entitled: Eastern HRM Strategic Planning Report 2014. The
report and May 23rd conference call notes can be found on the GHP website:
http://www.greaterhalifax.com/en/home/ourprograms/communitydevelopment/communityengagement-session.aspx
Robyn Webb introduced Darren Hirtle, Community Developer, HRM Volunteer Services and thanked him
for his participation. Discussion followed a generic template for the establishment of a community
development group provided by Darren. (see attached). This template will be fleshed out as a draft for
discussion at the next meeting of the steering committee via conference call on Friday, August 1, 2014
at 10 a.m. (Karen T.)
Mayor Savage, Councilors Hendsbee and Dalrymple, and MLA Murphy had been invited to the meeting
but were unable to attend. They will be kept up to date on progress via email.
Issues discussed
Role/Responsibilities: The provisional steering committee members considered various roles in relation
to community development: advocacy, advisory, collaboration, etc.
The decision was taken to focus on networking and collaboration on projects which contribute to the
economic, social and environmental development of the Eastern Shore and its communities including
business associations, heritage and tourism groups and other community development groups. A
decision was also taken to be inclusive of any and all groups which come forward and wish to
collaborate on projects which contribute to the goals and objectives set out in the March 31, 2014
report. Discussion also included the advantages of registering as an official society under the NS
Registry of Joint Stock Companies but it was felt that should any grant applications for funding be made
by the group in the future this could be done via one of the member organizations which are already
registered.
Boundaries: Discussion focused on relevant boundaries for the focus of activities. It was noted that
Porter’s Lake had been well represented at the March 31st public meeting. Robyn W. will contact the
Bluewater CBDC for contacts with existing organizations in that community. It was also mentioned that
Lawrencetown and Grand Desert (Darren to follow-up) should also be included as well as the Deanery
project in Ship Harbour (Karen T. to follow-up with Kim Thompson). The eastern boundary is roughly
Ecum Secum. It was noted that services of the relevant provincial Regional Economic Network (REN)
organization for the Eastern Shore were being covered by the GHP.
Identity/Name Chosen: Eastern HRM Region Communities’ Development Network
Priority Projects: It was noted that the March 2014 Strategic Planning meeting had resulted in an
extensive list of projects but that priorities needed to be identified for collaboration. Discussion on the
May 23rd conference call had focused on three economic development areas: local transportation;
extension and expansion of internet and cellphone coverage (a significant barrier for existing and startup businesses) and, Eastern Shore tourism destination designation for the Eastern Shore “Bay of Islands”
beginning with assessment via ACOA’s Strategic Tourism Expansion Program (STEP).
Communication/Outreach: GHP will continue to post Network minutes and information on its
community development program website (see reference, above). Robyn W. set up a Linkedin Group for
communication, information sharing and awareness.
Updates:

Gordon H. and Sandy M. reported on progress with the Bay of Islands initiative. Funding for the
community portion of the project is ongoing. An announcement of government funding is
expected over the course of the summer

Dee D. reported on a series of public meetings regarding public water services and other
development issues for Musquodoboit Harbour over the coming weeks.

Verna H. and Dee D. reported that Musquodoboit Valley and Musquodoboit Harbour were both
applying for local transportation funding.

Karen T. reported that Lake Charlotte Area Heritage Society had sponsored its first Eastern
Shore Cold Waters Seafood Festival showcasing the seafood of various local fisheries businesses.
Next Steering Committee conference call: Friday, August 1, 2014 10:00 to 11:00 (Robyn W. to arrange
logistics).