The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Snow Lake businesses are joining forces to grow commerce and community amid what they hope will be a mineral-fueled resurgence for the northern town. 'We're kind of in a crux right now where the population isn't here to support (new) businesses, but unless (new businesses) come here we won't get the population,' says Morgan Cann, president of the newly revived Snow Lake Chamber of Commerce. Cann convened the renewed chamber's first official meeting this past Friday, hoping to build on a membership that stood at about 10 businesses. See 'Growth' on pg. Continued from pg. He says the goal is to become a positive voice not only for businesses, but for the community of Snow Lake as a whole. 'We're open to anyone,' says Cann, manager of Snow Lake Home Building Centre. Cann heads a five-person executive that includes as secretary MaryAnn Mihychuk, the former provincial mines minister who now works as Snow Lake's economic development officer. 'I'm strongly supportive of the chamber of commerce and looking forward to building a strong and vibrant business community here in Snow Lake,' says Mihychuk. But that could be easier said than done despite years of optimistic economic forecasts for Snow Lake. The town is adjacent to Hudbay's massive Lalor mine, now in initial production, and is within commuting distance of the same company's Reed mine, also in early production. There are also plans for a specialized plant to extract valuable minerals from long-abandoned mine waste, and ongoing talk of restarting the former New Britannia gold mine within the town. Nonetheless, Snow Lake has not experienced the type of growth some hoped for _ and which many still expect. Cann is not ignorant of the challenges. If people are to call Snow Lake home rather than just commuting there to work, he says, they will want a broader selection of businesses. More residents would translate into a larger school population, which is important since Cann says the small size of the school makes prospective Snow Lakers think twice about relocating. 'Hopefully we can form a few committees to try and solve some of these problems,' he says. At just 23, Cann hopes to bring a positive outlook to the chamber. He admits he may be a little naive, but he adds that this can be an advantageous attribute. He knows Snow Lake well, having lived there his whole life save for the three years he left to study business at the University of Manitoba. Snow Lake has not had a chamber of commerce in roughly 30 years, though there was an aborted attempt at forming one in the 1990s. Cann says there are about 50 businesses in Snow Lake, of which 15 to 20 are sizable and quite active. He invites businesspeople and residents to visit the chamber's website at Snowlakechamber.ca and to join its Facebook group, listed under Snow Lake Chamber of Commerce.
