Economic Highlights

 INTERNATIONALLY RECOGNIZED…

• “American* Cities of the Future: Best FDI Strategy – Micro City Winner; Runner-up Micro City; and 6th for Quality of Life - Micro City” 2011/12 (fDi Magazine – Financial Times Ltd.) *North-Central-South
• "One of Canada's Best Places to Live" 2011, 2010, 2009, 2008 & 2007 (MoneySense)
• “Fredericton ranks eighth in the world for clean air” (2011 World Health Organization)
• “Gold Awards – Green Matters/Green Shops, Socio-Economic Category" (2010 International Awards for Liveable Communities endorsed by the United Nations Environment Programme)
• “Milestone 5 for Fredericton’s Corporate & Community GHG Emission Reduction Programs” 2011 (Federation of Canadian Municipalities’ Partners for Climate Protection Program) *Only four municipalities in Canada have achieved this high standard.
• "One of the World's Top 7 Intelligent Communities" 2009 & 2008 (Intelligent Community Forum)
•  “Fredericton ranks 2nd in Canada and 22nd in the World for Housing Affordability” 2011 (7th Annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey)
• "One of the Most Cost-Competitive Places to Do Business on the eastern  Seaboard” 2010 (KPMG Competitive Alternatives Study)
• “ISO 9001 Certified Organization” 2010, 2007 & 2004 (ISO Register is QMI-SAI Global)
• "Cultural Capital of Canada" 2009 (Government of Canada)
• "Top Five Renovator-Friendly Cities in Canada" 2009 (Canadian Contractor Magazine)
• "Fourth Best City for Families in Canada" 2009 (Who's Your City - Richard Florida)
• “Fredericton Employers Among Most Optimistic in Canada” 2009 Manpower Employment Outlook Survey
• “Third Best Place to Retire in Canada” 2008 (MoneySense)
• "Second Best Walking City in Canada" 2008 (Canadian Federation of Podiatric Medicine)
• "One of the Smart 21 Communities in the World" 2006 (Intelligent Community Forum)
• "One of the North American Cities of the Future" 2007 (Financial Times of London)
• 'Fred-eZone', Fredericton's Free Wi-Fi network, 2004 Canadian Information Productivity (CIPA) Judge's Innovation Award
• "Best City for Business" (Canadian Business)
• "One of the Top Five New Technology Boomtowns" (Globe & Mail Report on Business Magazine)
• "One of the Best Cities for Export" (Globe & Mail Report on Business Magazine)

• Best Value - Fredericton is one of the most cost competitive places to do business on the Eastern Seaboard (KPMG Competitive Alternatives Study). 
• More Businesses Per Capita - One business for every fourteen people. Source: KPMG Study 
• Family Income -  Estimated at $93,485 in 2012. Source: Financial Post Canadian Markets Demographics 2012
• Retail Sales - Estimated at 24% above the national average. Source: Financial Post Canadian Markets Demographics 2012
• Affordable Housing & Taxes - The cost of housing is well below the national average, and property taxes are low in comparison to major Canadian cities.
• Value of Construction - Record breaking high at $115.6 million in 2011. Source: Fredericton Development Services

SMART City … 

• Canada’s 1st Free Wireless City – With Fred-eZone, the municipally-owned wi-fi network, part of the City’s fibre optic network, goFred eFibre (formerly e-Novations).  Fred-eZone was the winner of a Canadian Information Productivity Award in 2004.
• Knowledge-based Capital of New Brunswick – Recognized twice as "One of the World’s Top 7 Intelligent Communities" (Intelligent Community Forum), Fredericton is home to over 70% of the province’s knowledge industry, as well as Canada’s largest per capita engineering cluster. 
• Innovation Hub - The City offers an innovative and synergistic environment for industry with its state-of-the-art facilities like Knowledge Park - housing the national Centre of Excellence in Advanced Learning Technology (CEALT).
• A Rich and Diverse Research Cluster - With impressive expertise in the fields of technology, forestry, and agriculture, local businesses have access to more than 60 research organizations including the National Research Council (NRC) Institute for Information Technology (IIT)'s E-Business Research Centre.  Recognized globally for research and innovation, NRC is a leader in the development of an innovative, knowledge-based economy for Canada through science and technology.  
• A Centre for Higher Education - Fredericton is home to four universities plus a variety of training colleges and institutes.  Fredericton also has the 4th highest university-educated population in the entire country at 31%. 

SUSTAINABILITY IS BY DESIGN…

• Green Revolution – Behind the face of Fredericton’s lush, green spaces and tree-adorned streets, there is a green revolution going on!  The City of Fredericton’s portfolio of environmental-related initiatives dates back nearly two decades, long before its ‘First to Kyoto’ initiative launched in 2000 as part of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities’ Partners for Climate Protection Program, aimed at reducing corporate/municipal greenhouse gas emissions.
• Green Economy - Fredericton has a growing environmental technology cluster, and is earning international attention for initiatives like Green Matters and Green Shops, geared towards reducing the City’s ecological footprint. 
• Green Matters - Green Matters was created to provide knowledge, motivation, and ownership of climate change ‘here at home’, and to provide the support and tools to engage and enable Fredericton to reduce community emissions in a sustained way. 
• Green Shops - The Green Shops Program engages the business community by encouraging them to reduce their environmental impact, all while improving their bottom line.  Businesses carry out actionable items to earn credits and receive bronze, silver or gold status in the program. Each item helps to reduce community GHGs; encourage smart and sustainable business practices; and build a network of environmentally conscious business owners willing to support one another.
• Gold Awards - Green Shops and Green Matters received two Gold International Awards for Liveable Communities (2010 LivCom Awards endorsed by the United Nations Environment Programme). Green Matters also placed second in the ‘socio-economic’ category, against projects from around the world. A Bronze Award was also granted in the ‘whole city population’ category.  
• Milestone 5 - Fredericton has received Milestone 5 for both its corporate and community greenhouse gas emission reduction programs, through the Federation of Canadian Municipalities’ Partners for Climate Protection Program. Only four municipalities in Canada have achieved this high standard of emission inventorying, monitoring and reporting. Fredericton continues to be a leader in creating a green, sustainable community. 

BALANCED LIFESTYLE… 

• A Short Commute - The City Centre is minutes away, whether you reside in the downtown core within a five-minute walk to work, or in the country within a ten-minute drive -- traffic jams are non-existent!
• Centrally Located - Within an hour's drive to the U.S. Interstate 95 - the major American north-south corridor; within a day's drive of Halifax, Toronto and New York; less than an hour away from Saint John - the region's busiest seaport; and just a 15 minute drive from the Airport.
• Safe Place to Live & Work - With a low rate of crime.
• Booming Tourism - $220 million injected into the local economy during 2010.  Source:  Fredericton Tourism
• Abundant Recreational Activities - including over 85 km of trails for biking, walking, running and cross country skiing, plus seven local golf courses.
• Mecca of Art, Culture & History - with numerous galleries, festivals, and attractions.
• Clean, Safe Drinking Water - The City is proud of its excellent water quality  - delivered by a well maintained distribution system.  

And there is more...!

• Economic Drivers - CFB Gagetown, the largest military training base in the commonwealth, infuses over $500 million dollars annually into the New Brunswick economy and $220 million into the local economy.  The base employs over 4,500 permanent military personnel, 1,500 civilian staff, and has approximately 6,000 transient personnel in a given year.  Source CFB
• Population – There are 85,688 people within Fredericton’s CA (census agglomeration area), 124,172 people within the Greater Fredericton Region, and over 322,670 people residing within a 100 km radius of the city.
• Young, Skilled, Bilingual Work Force - The City's population is younger than both the provincial and national averages.  22% have knowledge of both French and English (Source: Statistics Canada)  Graduates of four universities continue to grow the City's skilled workforce - particularly with respect to knowledge-based, research & development and customer contact centre employees.