NEW GLASGOW – Staff at the Pictou Regional Development Agency are preparing for its doors to be shut by the end of this month.
Executive director Jack Kyte said the PRDA is in the process of wrapping up two significant projects, going through files as well as determining what will be done with assets inside the office.
“It’s business as usual, but we are wrapping up a lot of things,” he said. “We have been active for more than 20 years and a lot of material has been kept so we have to determine what to do with it.”
He said some of the unfinished projects will be passed along to other community organizations in case they want to carry on the work while others that are completed will be categorized and made available for future use.
The PRDA announced in November 2012 that it would be forced to close its doors this spring after seeing a significant reduction in government funding.
Regional Economic Networks will soon replace the existing RDAs and they will be funded jointly by the province and municipalities. The 12 RDAs in the province currently operate on a $6.3 million budget, split between three levels of government.
As of March 31, the Pictou Regional Development Agency, along with 11 other RDAs in the province will no longer exist, with six new RENs expected to start.
The new REN for the area will involve 11 municipalities, made of up Pictou and Antigonish counties as well as St. Mary’s, Sherbrooke and a section of Halifax Region.
Kyte said only one person has left the PRDA since it announced late last year that it would be closing, but all staff are looking for other employment opportunities.
“Everyone is actively seeking employment,” he said, adding that although RDAs might be replaced by a new economic development organization, there is no guarantee that anyone working for an RDA will get the job. He said all applicants have to go through a competitive hiring process.
