City welcomes Ontario Auto Mayors

MunicipalInfonet.com
Nov. 10, 2023

Marking the 10th anniversary of the first meeting of the Ontario Auto Mayors, the City of Vaughan hosted the second 2023 Ontario Auto Mayors Caucus at Vaughan City Hall on Nov. 3, drawing attendees and sector leaders from across the province.

Members attended an in-person meeting of the municipal advocacy group to discuss the latest updates and trends in the automotive industry. Chaired by Town of Oakville Mayor Rob Burton and hosted by City of Vaughan Mayor Steven Del Duca, the group included representatives from 31 Ontario municipalities, Ontario’s original equipment manufacturers and automotive industry associations.

The meeting began with a welcome from Brendan Sweeney of the Trillium Network for Advanced Manufacturing, followed by an update from Gian Paolo Vescio of the Automotive Parts Manufacturers’ Association. Earl Provost, Ontario Agent-General in Chicago, discussed trade relations and opportunities between Ontario and the Midwestern United States.

The remainder of the meeting centred around four strategic areas outlined in the recently approved Auto Mayors 2023 Action Plan (PDF), including competitive manufacturing taxes, highly skilled and diverse talent, electric vehicle adoption and technology and combating automotive theft. The Ontario Auto Mayors will work collaboratively with both the provincial and federal governments to promote awareness of these key priorities.

About Vaughan’s automotive sector

As the largest economic driver in York Region, Vaughan has a flourishing automotive sector anchored by many globally recognized tier 1 suppliers. The automotive sector in Vaughan makes up a significant part of the advanced manufacturing cluster in the city, which contributed $4 billion in real gross domestic product to Vaughan’s economy in 2022. Vaughan is home to more than 660 sector-related businesses employing nearly 14,000 people.

Vaughan-based automotive businesses benefit from access to a robust and skilled workforce force, including a highly educated population (with 73 per cent of residents aged 25 and older holding a post-secondary education), a talent pool of nearly 84,000 STEM students and a labour force of 3.9 million within a one-hour drive. Vaughan’s unparalleled location also offers proximity to key automotive assembly plants and access to the city’s emerging business-to-consumer electric vehicle cluster located at Weston Road and Highway 7, boasting significant industry leaders.

To learn more about the Ontario Auto Mayors initiative or to discover how Vaughan is an ideal location for your automotive business, visit vaughanbusiness.ca/auto.