Fort McMurray Update

Today in the Calgary Herald there was an article which presented an interesting look at what's going on in  Fort McMurray.  As a lender we have always looked at Fort Mac as a scary place to lend.  Is it a boom/bust town, or will it find its footings and become a viable long term community.  Well, it appears that it is indeed a town on the rise, and with quite a future in front of it.

The article quotes the mayor, Melissa Blake, who comments on the ongoing infrastructure buildup from the last surge in the economy.  She states that only now is the city caught up with the necessary changes to accomodate the growing population.  She feels that they are on the cusp of further growth and that the city needs to prepare for the next onslaught.

Fort Mac has always been somewhat of an unique entity.  Stuck by itself, way off the beaten track, it has seen vast amounts of investment money pulse through its streets from various national and international companies.  Workers from all around the world have been employed there.  Fortunes made and fortunes lost.  It has something of the Dawson City Gold Rush feel of the last century! 

Fort Mac could be the barometer of change on our industry, which finds itself in a state of flux--unsure of whether it is moving forward or backwards.  Either way it looks like Fort MacMurray's days of glory are far from over.