City wins two awards from the Economic Developers Council of Ontario

Municipalinfonet.com
April 28, 2022

Vaughan Mayor Maurizio Bevilacqua issued the following statement after a special presentation during the April 26 Council meeting:

"I am pleased to announce the City of Vaughan has received two awards from the Economic Developers Council of Ontario (EDCO). The EDCO Awards of Excellence is a well-established program recognizing outstanding economic development initiatives in the Province. It aims to seek unique ideas that can become best practices of the future. Award recipients are viewed as leaders in the industry -- and this includes our Economic Development department, which has been recognized for their Activate!Vaughan Smart City Challenge and Fav Spot Vaughan initiatives.

"The Activate!Vaughan Smart City Challenge marks a significant step forward to build on the City's focused efforts to be a Smart City leader. This first-of-its-kind program in Ontario called on entrepreneurs and startup and scaleup businesses to propose innovative smart city technologies to enhance the quality of life in Vaughan and beyond. The challenge brought together City departments, industry partners, startups and scaleups to address the challenges of today and the future. Together with our partners, we are using a smart city approach to achieve meaningful outcomes and enhance the quality of life for residents by leveraging data and emerging connected technology.

"The second EDCO Awards is for a placemaking campaign called Fav Spot Vaughan. This initiative launched in 2020 to highlight local tourism and businesses, particularly those impacted by COVID-19 health and safety measures. The project was successful in its objectives to execute an engaging campaign to promote businesses impacted by the pandemic, increase Tourism Vaughan's profile and build a database of relevant user-generated content.

"These awards reflect our Economic Development team's ongoing leadership in supporting Vaughan's transformative, ambitious and purpose-driven economy. I want to express my warmest and sincerest gratitude to the City's Economic Development and Smart City teams for their ongoing efforts to raise our City to new and unprecedented heights."