It was a banner year for Altona and Rhineland Economic Development Inc. (ARED), economic development officer Stephanie Peters shared with municipal leaders earlier this month.
“It’s always nice to look back at the year and look at what we’ve accomplished. We’ve been working really hard,” she said.
The agency’s role in the region is to “help create the conditions that allow local businesses and communities to grow and succeed,” Peters noted. “That means not only attracting new businesses, but also supporting the ones already here, building connections, and making sure our region remains a great place to live and work.
“It’s also important to remember that economic development takes time and strong relationships. Some results happen quickly, but many of our efforts are about setting things in motion, building a solid foundation that will lead to more growth and investment in the years ahead”
To that end, engaging with established as well as new business leaders in the community remained a key focus for Peters.
She met with more than 80 entrepreneurs in 2024-2025, resulting in 57 connections and 37 new business opportunities, including start-ups, expansions, and successful grant applications that led directly to job creation.
“I’m constantly meeting with new businesses, with pre-existing business to find out how can we get them started or what are their needs for growth, what can we do to help?” Peters said.
The Altona-Rhineland area is an attractive one to entrepreneurs, she observed.
“They talk a lot about the support that they receive from the community, the proximity and location of our region [to other urban centres], and the work ethic as well of the people that are here.”
The agency administered $131,075.56 in Business Grant Program funding to support new start-ups, business expansions, and acquisitions. Fourteen business benefited from this funding, Peters noted.
“Forty new jobs were created in the region just through that program,” she said. “The feedback has been really positive … [the program] has been really helpful in getting those businesses the funds that they need so that they can take the next step to start their business or to be able to grow an existing business.”
ARED’s tax incentive program also continued to support new commercial and industrial development. In 2024, municipalities provided nearly $112,000 in tax rebates. That number jumped to nearly $150,000 in 2025.
“These programs help businesses make the decision to build in the RPGA region,” Peters said. “Receiving a tax rebate for the first three years of development is a major support when they need it most.”
The agency is also involved in workforce development through immigration. In 2024, it launched the Rural Community Immigration Pilot (RCIP). Since then, 18 job offers have been made through the program.
“The immigration program is really important in addressing the workforce and labour issues that some of our businesses face,” Peters said.
She shared that they’re also working with the Manitoba Provincial Nominee Program on a new immigration initiative expected to be announced in 2026.
Another facet of the organization’s work is in simply getting the word out about who they are and what they do. In 2025 they’ve rolled out a total rebrand, launched a new website, and expanded their social media presence.
“We definitely have built momentum, really gotten the word is out there,” Peters said. “But I find I’m still having conversations with entrepreneurs who say, ‘I didn’t know you guys existed’ … so we are still doing outreach.”
ARED has big plans for the year ahead, and a new strategic plan to get them there. It revolves around four priorities: business retention and expansion, business and entrepreneurial support, workforce development, and organization structure.
Among the highlights of Peters’ to-do list related to those priorities include launching a comprehensive new developer’s package, undertaking a labour market needs assessment for the RCIP program, ongoing staff and board training, and overseeing the new subsidized rent program for commercial and industrial leases.
“We have been receiving feedback from some of the local real estate companies that entrepreneurs are looking at a location but that amount of rent that they’re going to have to pay is just not feasible for them,” Peters said. “So I’m excited about launching this new program to try to help alleviate some of those costs.”
You can learn more about all ARED’s programs online at ared-rpga.com.
