County of Brant reports record-breaking year for development amid growth, construction challenges

Casandra Turnbull

Managing Editor

County of Brant shares 2025 Economic Development and Tourism Year End Report

County of Brant officials say 2025 marked a “record-breaking” year for industrial and commercial development, highlighted by more than $160 million in permits issued and several major private-sector investments expected to create hundreds of jobs across the municipality. 

The County recently released its 2025 Economic Development and Tourism Year End Report, outlining growth trends, infrastructure planning, tourism initiatives and mitigation efforts tied to the Downtown Dig construction project in Paris. 

In follow-up comments to The Paris Independent, Zach Gable, director of economic development and tourism, said the record-setting year was driven largely by industrial and commercial building activity.

“The record-breaking year is mostly defined by the value of Industrial and Commercial building permits that were issued in 2025,” said Gable. “Since 2017, building permits issued, Industrial and Commercial permits ranged from $16,199,000 in 2017 to the previous high of $60,116,000 in 2022.”

According to the report, industrial development permits totalled $150.2 million in 2025, up sharply from $16.8 million in 2024. Commercial permits also increased to more than $10.3 million. 

Major projects included Amazon’s planned 200,000-square-foot last-mile delivery station near Rest Acres Road and Highway 403, as well as the relocation of 1200 Degrees Ontario to Burford. 

Gable said several large investments announced in 2025, including Amazon, Tigercat and 1200 Degrees Ontario, are expected to create approximately 400 jobs as projects move through various construction stages. The report also highlights Tigercat Industries’ continued expansion in Paris, including completion of a new 275,000-square-foot facility at 141 Consolidated Dr. Manufacturing remained the County’s largest employment sector in 2025 with 3,851 jobs, a 16 per cent increase from 2021. 

While the report points to strong growth in sectors such as transportation and warehousing, health care and professional services, it also notes declines in the number of agriculture and manufacturing businesses.  Gable said those declines reflect broader economic trends rather than a shrinking labour market.

“While the number of businesses in these sectors were shown to decrease, the number of jobs in manufacturing has seen steady growth from 2021 to 2025,” he said, noting the data from this report is collected from both Statistics Canada’s Canada Business Count and Lightcast analysis. “The County is fortunate to have local successes like Tigercat expanding.”

He added the County is focusing on the Cainsville Premier Employment Hub Comprehensive Land Use Strategy to encourage advanced manufacturing growth. 

Agriculture also remains a major priority, with the County preparing to launch its Rural Prosperity Community Improvement Plan aimed at helping farm businesses diversify revenue streams and remain viable long term. 

The report also devotes significant attention to the Downtown Dig reconstruction project in downtown Paris, which began in spring 2025 and is expected to continue over four years. 

County staff, working alongside the Downtown Paris BIA, launched promotional campaigns, visitor ambassador programs and special events to help offset disruptions caused by construction. 

Still, Gable acknowledged some businesses experienced significant impacts.

“Reported impacts varied widely,” he said. “Some businesses indicated no measurable change, while others reported declines of up to 50%, with most falling in the 10 to 25% range during construction.”

The County said feedback from businesses resulted in changes to communications and support efforts.

“Feedback also identified areas for improvement, including earlier and more proactive communication, more tailored business support (i.e. workshops) and professional development opportunities, and continued attention to signage, pedestrian access, and coordination during construction phases,” Gable said.

In response, the County increased outreach to businesses and surrounding neighbourhoods while adding additional local signage and coordination with utility partners, he added.

Despite the disruption, the County reported seven new businesses opened in downtown Paris during 2025. 

The report also highlights a major increase in Community Improvement Plan (CIP) activity. Nineteen projects were approved in 2025, with $257,180 in grants leveraging nearly $1.4 million in property improvements.  Gable said the County measures success both through immediate private-sector investment and longer-term assessment growth.

“In the short term, the County of Brant tracks the leveraged grant dollars to make improvements to properties,” he said. “In the longer term, The County of Brant will track the assessment growth of the properties that have had CIP projects through MPAC assessments.”

He added the County has also seen a longer-term decline in downtown vacancy rates. Not all applications were approved. Gable said one application was withdrawn by the applicant, one was deemed ineligible and another was deferred.

The report further points to continued population growth pressures. The County’s population is projected to increase from nearly 46,000 residents in 2025 to more than 51,000 by 2035. Gable said infrastructure remains one of the largest challenges tied to future economic growth.

“Ensuring the appropriate infrastructure is in place continues to be an area of focus for the County in order to ensure there is both adequate road infrastructure and services to facilitate business development,” he said. Among the major projects identified are wastewater servicing expansions in Cainsville and along Paris Road, as well as long-term improvements around the Highway 403 and Rest Acres Road interchange to support employment lands development.

The report also highlights tourism and cultural initiatives, including 36 special events attracting an estimated 128,000 attendees, Culture Days programming that ranked the County seventh nationally among small municipalities, and continued promotion of local businesses through the Locale tourism guide and Brant Eats campaign. 

The full report is available through the County of Brant’s economic development website at www.brant.ca/Invest.