A16 THE FREE PRESS BUSINESS MAY 10, 2001 Stream makes it official Call centre takes its 900jobs to Chilliwack, not PG By JENNIFER FEINBERG for The Free Press Here cones the company everyone in Chilliwack has been talking about. Stream International announced Tuesday it has selected Chilliwack as the location of its next Canadian call centre after months of consideration and an in-depth study of the area. The company started looking at Chilliwack after attempts to secure a facility fell through in Prince George. Once fully operational in August, Stream’s third Canadian centre will employ up to 900 employees. “We are very pleased with the commitment we’ve received from the City of Chilliwack, CEPCO, Human Resources Develop ment Canada, the province of B.C. and the local Stoilo First Nations community and from all the people who played such a critical role in helping Stream reach this decision,” says R. Scott Murray, Stream president and CEO. The U.S. based company, an outsourcing and support services provider for tech companies and e-business, recently signed a 10-year lease for the Oak West Building at 7955 Evans Road. “We believe that Stream International will be an outstanding corporate partner for our community, providing significant economic benefits to the city and the entire region,” says Chilliwack Mayor Clint Hames. “We were very impressed with Stream’s commitment to training and the willingness to invest in the people of Chilli- wack to create a wealth of great new career opportunities for our local residents." Chilliwack Economic Partners Corporation (CEPCO) has a mandate to create new employment, expand the commercial tax base and create economic growth in the community, says John Jansen, CEPCO pres ident. “The new Stream centre will achieve CEPCO’s economic goals and provides a msqor boost to the local economy," says Mr. Jansen. The provincial government, through the Linx BC program, provided $500,000 to assist with training workers. Other training funding came from HRDC, B.C. Ministry of Social Development and Economic Security, as well as the Sto:lo Nation. Roy Mussell, manager of Sto:lo Nation Human Resources Development, says he is pleased with the Stream announcement. “Our commitment of a half a million dollars supports aboriginal participation with Stream International and we look forward to being one of their many new partners,” he adds. Stream had more than 2,500 potential employees visit the local open house events held here in February, according to Mr Murray. "This reception and the resulting skill set that we saw was just tremendous,” he says. “We appreciate the hard work put forward by the city and in particular, the mayor’s office, CEPCO and its staff, to assist us in reaching our decision to become a long-term member of the business community in Chilliwack.” Industrial yATCC iM vJ I t j ♦— Housing Starts drop in Prince George While the rest of British Columbia seems to be enjoying an upswing in home construction, Prince George continues to drop. According to figures released by the Canada Mortgage Housing Corporation, Prince George in April dropped 33 per cent from the same time last year. And the year to date, the decline in housing starts in PG is 43 per cent. Tourism Northwind is now running The Whistler Northwind, B.C. Rail's new luxury train, left the station for the first time yesterday A fusion of railroading’s golden era with modern amenities, the train is expected to boost local tourism. 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