Mackenzie Mayor Smiling
By 250 News
The Mayor of the District of Mackenzie says the news from Canfor has started a buzz of activity. Stephanie Killam says "We're quite happy with word Canfor is going to keep the "A" mill operating, and rather than a sigh of relief in the community, there is a real buzz of activity as people can now make plans, and get on with their lives."
Earlier today, Canfor announced it would triple shift the "A" mill, and while it will maintain 320 jobs, there will still be a loss of 130 positions. The company says there will be early retirement incentives, and where possible, employees could be transferred to other Canfor operations. The changes are expected to take effect at the end of August.
Killam says there are some who need to be thanked for all their efforts "Especially those with the regional Canfor offices, B.C. Timber Sales and MLA Pat Bell. They worked very hard over the past 90 days "
Mayor Killam says the community will first work towards assisting those who will be out of work. "The Mackenzie Employment and Career Centre will work with displaced employees, the College of New Caledonia will be available to assist in educational opportunities and Mackenzie Counselling will help those who will need to work their way through their loss."
The community won't be taking a breather says Mayor Killam "We will continue to work on our diversification goals including the Geo-Science mapping, Terrane Minerals, and projects with Fort St. James."
In May, Canfor had announced it would close "indefinitely" the Mackenzie mill, a move that would have cost 450 jobs.
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Posted by: Chadermando on July 27 2007 10:46 PM
"As for the Mackenzie mill, Canfor said Friday it has worked with its employees and the unions to improve its efficiency to allow for the reopening. As well, it said the provincial government has reduced the mill's delivered log costs."
Does anyone know what kind of a deal was made between the provincial government and Canfor so that Canfor could get reduced log costs?
If anyone wishes to read the entire CBC News article, the following is the link to it.
http://www.cbc.ca/cp/business/070727/b0727163A.html
It seems to me the housing "meltdown" in the United States is going to get much worse. This, I think is going to have severe implications for the economy in Prince George and the rest of the central interior of B.C. Countrywide Financial is one of the largest mortgage lenders in the United States.
The following three paragraphs are from a recent article on the Washington Post web site.
"It's harder to show pity for those in the industry who seem shocked by what's going on. Among them is Countrywide's Mozilo. He held a three-hour conference call Tuesday with financial analysts and described how the terrible housing conditions would continue to batter Countrywide's earnings this year.
The Calabasas, Calif.-based mortgage lender said its second-quarter profit shrank by nearly a third as softening home prices led to rising delinquencies and mortgage defaults among even the most creditworthy borrowers.
"I do think it's important to observe what happens going forward because we are experiencing home price depreciation almost like never before with the exception of the Great Depression," Mozilo said. "This is a huge battleship and it's headed in the wrong direction,"
If anyone wishes to read this entire article, the following is the link to it.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/07/27/AR2007072701226.html
Clearly I think it is time for citizens, businesses and (especially) governments in Prince George and the rest of the central interior of B.C. to have the foresight to see what is coming down the road at us with regards to the economy in this region as a result of this housing "meltdown" in the USA, and adjust our spending habits accordingly.
I think this party (of debt fueled spending) is just about over in this area, and the hangover is about to begin.