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Despite more than a decade of economic and population growth, leaders of the Municipality of Wood Buffalo are urging outside investors that there's still opportunity to get in on the ground floor. Wood Buffalo Economic Development is touting the opportunities in Fort McMurray and the surrounding area as BIG -- Bold, Innovative Growth. And officials have plenty of big numbers to back up their pitches. Demographics are especially in the area's favor. The municipality has an average age of 31, and 32 percent of its population is under the age of 25. The area is fast becoming a family community. Nearly one in five residents is under the age of 15, meaning there is an immediate need for new companies to enter the market and supply the needs of the next generation. Between 2000 and 2010, the population of Fort McMurray grew by 80 percent. Population growth will likely continue at exponential rates, thanks to a birth rate of over 100 babies a month combined with high numbers of new residents arriving daily. Current projections have the area population doubling by 2030, to an estimated 230,000 citizens. Average income in the area is 103 percent higher than the national average. This growth is tied to the local oil sands industry. Already, there are 16 major oil sands projects underway with several more either under construction or approved for construction. Over the next several years, both oil sands output and the person-hours required to produce it will more than quadruple. The total combined investment is now approaching $500 billion. So what do these big numbers mean for potential investors in Fort McMurray? A young population means a market with families in its future. Area officials promote Fort McMurray as offering the greatest opportunity in all of Canada to get in at the ground floor with motivated and financially secure residents in pursuit of an active and affluent lifestyle. Area leaders believe the region will create affluence for decades to come, based on the technology created here and the resources available. Wood Buffalo is touted as being on the leading edge of the science and technology developments that will power tomorrow. For example, the municipality is pursuing an initiative to turn waste into a valuable resource, which would make the area a model for the rest of the world. Local industry is also developing innovative new technologies on a daily basis, such as Suncor's Tailings Reduction Operation, a technological development that has changed the face of oil sands reclamation.Leaders also believe there is opportunity for outside investment based on new initiatives in the City Centre, the Municipal Development Plan, an expanded airport, and new neighbourhoods. According to the 2010 Wood Buffalo Regional Business Inventory and Gap Analysis, the most notable 'gaps' in the area's business profile are: accommodation and food services; arts, entertainment and recreation; health care and social assistance; educational services, finance and insurance and retail trade. Area officials will tell anybody that whoever comes in to fill those gaps will receive a sizeable return on their investments. Information about industry and housing in Fort McMurray. Additional information on Fort McMurray accommodations can be found at our website.
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