Message from the president of the GPCA
Todd Anderson Tell me about yourself and how long you’ve been GPCA president for.
they are anticipating long-term growth and stability in this region.
I moved to Grande Prairie 15 years ago and brought Chinook Drywall with me. I have been the GPCA president for one year and I currently just started my second and last year as president of the association.
What have been some initiatives and main priorities for the association this year?
What are some projects going on in the Grande Prairie area and why is this exciting for the region? The Grande Prairie Composite High School is very exciting. The old high school currently occupied is very old and has scaffolding in every hallway, which braces ceilings or other things. It was long overdue and will be a safe and modern facility. Another project, Seven Generations recently announced their new office building. This will be one of the larger offices in the area and will be built for longevity with quality products and trades. Seven Generations is an industry leader in oil and gas, and having them build a long-term expanded office is exciting for the stability of the region and local workers. We also have more dealerships on the way with a new Volkswagen, Chrysler, and Ford dealerships in the finishing stages of being built. This is exciting because with their investment into new bigger, nicer buildings,
Our initiatives this year will be the rebranding and roll out of our new logo in April. We have also added discounts to local businesses as part of our benefits program. More importantly, we have spent a lot of time with our local and provincial politicians promoting prompt payment and WCB reform. Prompt payment legislation has been recognized by our ministers as a major priority for the construction industry to keep it healthy and viable. We talked to Minister Nate Glubish who is working on prompt payment and were very excited to hear of his progress and interest in having the construction association be a part of the solution. The majority of our industry consists of small trade companies of 10 employees or less and prompt payment legislation will lower our risk on jobs and keep companies from going bankrupt due to lack of payment. We recently had the opportunity to talk to Premier Kenney about this and he also confirmed it is on their radar as they look for an Alberta-made solution for Albertans.
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How has the association evolved since you’ve been a member? Why should one join the association? When I joined the association many years ago, the main reason anyone joined was access to the COOLNet online plan room so we could bid on government jobs. With the current economic situation, the need is still there for the renamed BuildWorks access, but more importantly, the need to provide members with a credible, common voice with access to government is essential. Our members need to know we are improving and protecting the construction industry and making it sustainable. If someone is on the fence about joining, know your membership fee not only gives you access to government jobs, but it also gives you member benefits with local companies and printing services with us, discounted access to a commisioner of oaths and industry contracts, discounted safety documents, the opportunity to attend and mix with other trades and general contractors at our mixer events, help support local apprentices with scholarship funds from our golf tournament, and gives you a voice with our government. With all the changes that have occurred with legislation over the past four years, I feel this is one of the most important parts. What do GPCA members have to look forward to this year? This year we will continue to have our regular mixers and scholarship promotion, we teamed up with local schools to have a Trades Cafe and promote the next generation coming into the trades. We also have several meetings planned with local and provincial government leaders to make changes to our industry in prompt payment, education, WCB, and anything else our members need. Watch for updates on prompt payment as this is such a big deal in our industry and long overdue. -
