The 'Red Carpet, Not Red Tape," policy, developed by the Okotoks and District Chamber of Commerce will be presented to Town Council this afternoon.

An online survey was created by the Chamber to capture information from local business owners and public participants regarding starting a business in Okotoks, and the burdens faced when dealing with municipal requirements.

Jayme Hall, Executive Director for the Okotoks and District Chamber of Commerce, says the information gathered brought forth concerns of further difficulties in launching or expanding an Okotoks business.

"They had a really difficult time starting their business in Okotoks, and the members felt that starting a business should be easier. After we got that basic information from a few members, we started to have further conversations about their experiences with the Town of Okotoks in starting and or expanding their business. And, what we found, was that there was a lot of red tape," he said.

Hall says the online survey created by the Chamber brought great information to light from local business owners.

"There was roughly 75 per cent of current business owners had struggles. So, that's a variety of different things from inaccurate times lines, to being told that they had a list of five or six things to complete before they could open their business, and after they completed that list, the town said, hold the phone, you have a list of another ten things you need to accomplish," he said.

Hall adds the information gathered assisted in developing a policy, which will be presented to Council, with the goal of easing business start up and expansions.

"There was a lack of transparency, and just a lack of information when it comes to realistic timelines for business start up and expansion in Okotoks, and costs associated with that. We took our findings from this survey, and we wrote a policy explaining what red tape is, and where we got the information from," he said.

Approximately 100 people participated in the online survey, including business owners and members of the community. A total of 13 recommendations will be presented to Council by the Chamber at the Town Council meeting.

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