Municipal Census Begins April 2, 2012 

The City of St. Albert's 2012 Census begins on April 2, 2012.

The municipal census is done every two years. Updated census data provides critical demographic information to plan for community programs and services (transportation, schools, utilities, emergency services, and recreation facilities) and economic development.  Population data is also important to receive maximum benefit from federal and provincial per capita grants.

The City is encouraging residents to complete the census online between April 2 and 27. Each household will be sent a letter by April 1 from the City containing a unique access code that allows them to complete the census online. As more residents complete their census online, the City experiences reduced census costs and improved data accuracy. The City first tried the online system in 2010, with 40 per cent of residents completing the census that way. In 2012, the City hopes to increase online participation to over 50 per cent of households. The online system is a fast, flexible, and secure way of doing the census. 

Enumerators will be door knocking starting May 7 to survey households that did not complete the census online.

The St. Albert business community was fortunate to have two nominee finalists in the 2012 Alberta Awards of Distinction with one honoured and chosen.

In the Small Business Award of Distinction category; Quantum Chemical was one of the four nominees who were shortlisted, along with Green Clean Squad-Edmonton, Premium Sausage - Seven Persons, and Xtreme Hot Oil Services - Hinton (the winner). The selection of Quantum as a finalist in the Small Business category acknowledges the outstanding spirit and success of our businesses.

Jodie McFadzen of Penzen Limited

Jodie McFadzen, Penzen Limited was chosen to receive the 2012 Youth Entrepreneur Award of Distinction.Jodie McFadzen offers technical writing and bookkeeping services for clients across Alberta and Canada. Penzen started in 2006, putting together operation and maintenance manuals for general contractors.  As the company has grown, McFadzen has taken on a wide variety of projects including Alberta Infrastructure, City of St. Albert, City of Edmonton, City of Calgary, as well as numerous school divisions. Future plans include electronic manuals for her clients tablet and smart phones.

Other nominees included Colby Delorme, Nation Imagination The Aboriginal Gifting Company, Calgary and Mohamid Walid Ibraham, Al-Halim Enterprise Limited-Edmonton.

Focusing on...
Holiday Dental 

 

Each month, we feature a St. Albert business in our Focus on Business Newsletter to help support our business community and get the word out about all of the great businesses we have here!  Claudia caught up with Daren Frick from Holiday Dental to chat about doing business in St. Albert...

 

Daren Frick of Holiday Dental

Why did you start your business in St. Albert? 

St. Albert is where I live. After finding out that my family and I would be relocating from Ontario to the Edmonton area in 2007, I asked around at work and St. Albert was recommended as a great place to live by a number of people.

After launching Holiday Dental in late 2011, I quickly realized I needed office space. I'd walked and cycled past the NABI building on Mission Avenue a number of times, and I'd heard of the business incubator concept while living elsewhere, so I enquired about what NABI had to offer. It's worked out really well. Having access to the ideas and energy of other entrepreneurs and the staff and resources at NABI has helped me move the business forward.

St. Albert is a very livable city, so it comes as no surprise that working here is also enjoyable. Although it seems we're playing catch-up, City council seems to be aware of the need to foster a favorable business climate.  

Who is your target market / who are your customers?

Because Holiday Dental is an internet based company, our target market is dispersed right across North America. We target dental patients who are searching for alternatives to the high cost of dental work in Canada and the USA. All the dentists with whom we're affiliated are located in holiday destinations in Mexico. Surprisingly, many of the people we've helped have told us their motivation for turning to Holiday Dental has to do with receiving quality, safe dental care and having a great holiday that's paid for by their savings on dental treatment was not really a consideration. This has made running the business so much more rewarding than originally expected. They're so happy to have found our company and to have allowed Holiday Dental to solve a big problem for them.

What makes your business different or stand out from others?

The Holiday Dental approach to business is so different that we essentially have no competitors in the international dental referral sector. We have a few quasi-competitors. Generally, they are all either little more than advertising portals, with no real familiarity with the dentists they promote or they are allied exclusively with a single dental practice. Neither of these approaches results in informed, objective advice for the dental tourist.

Further to this, no other international dental referral service does the extensive up-front quality control and verification that Holiday Dental does. We use a proprietary assessment tool that considers eight elements of a dental practice's ability to meet the standards expected by North American dental tourists. What's more, we leverage our extensive network of industry connections (another thing that sets us apart), in order to identify top practitioners for possible assessment. We assess by invitation only.

Do you incorporate technology into your business - twitter, facebook, web etc.

Holiday Dental is internet based: (www.holidaydental.ca). Our clients come from across North America; presently from as far afield as Nova Scotia and California.

What's your favourite thing about St. Albert?

St. Albert embraces winter, and why not? There's no denying it. With lots of outdoor skating, cross country skiing and great sliding hills, it's difficult to get bored with winter in St. Albert.

Holiday Dental Inc.

ph. 780.460.1049

www.holidaydental.ca