RIM-owned Chalk Media to expand (News)

Company | Firm will lease most of the space in a new Knowledge Park building

By STEPHEN LLEWELLYN
llewellyn.stephen@dailygleaner.com



The provincial government is loaning the Knowledge Park $3.3 million to build the 4,050-square-metre (45,000-square-foot) building. As well, it's providing Chalk Media with a $480,000 payroll rebate.

Morgan Elliot, director of government relations for Research in Motion, which owns Chalk Media, said Chalk will take up 2,700-square-metres (30,000-square-feet) in the new building.

He said it was only seven months ago that RIM announced the first expansion of Chalk Media.

"Now today we are here to say not only are we creating those extra 50 jobs, we are going to add another 30," said Elliot.

Chalk Media is located in downtown Fredericton but space is limited, he said. Sixty people work at the downtown location.

"It is such a pleasure to be a part of this announcement and to be a member of the Knowledge Park," said Elliot.

"The sooner the new building is up, the better, because we are quite cramped."

Elliot said developing clusters is important.

"There is energy you get from collaborating with different companies."

RIM is based in Waterloo, Ont., which has a rich Mennonite heritage that includes community barn building, said Elliot.

"I have to tell you that dealing with the provincial government that is here in New Brunswick, the municipality, the universities, that same spirit of collaboration is right here," he said.

"It has been fantastic to deal with everyone. We hope this is the beginning of more great stuff to come in the future."

Elliot said the jobs range from programmers to quality assurance to project managers and co-op students.

"These jobs are highly sought after," he said. "These are very well paying jobs."

The announcement was made Tuesday afternoon in the parking lot in front of the first Knowledge Park building.

"It is really amazing what's been done in such a short time," Elliot said about the park which built its first building in 1997.

Development is heating up in the Knowledge Park.

In July, the provincial government announced it was giving the Knowledge Park a $4.5-million interest-free loan to construct a fourth building, which will house the new Centre of Excellence in Advanced Learning Technologies.

"Space is filling so quickly in the park that we had been approached to discuss an additional fifth building," said Finance Minister Greg Byrne in a release Tuesday.

"Today, I am pleased to announce that the provincial government will have a hand in ensuring that the Knowledge Park is able to continue to grow to meet the increased demand for space."

Doug Motty, CEO of Enterprise Fredericton, which runs the Knowledge Park, said the rapid growth sends a signal that New Brunswick is open for business and ready to support the IT industry.

Chalk Media Service Corp. is adding 30 jobs to its facility in the capital and moving all 130 employees to a fifth building in the Fredericton Knowledge Park.

"We have been in discussions with well-known international firms to grow their companies here and this commitment by Research in Motion shows it understands the value of the New Brunswick business climate," he said in a release.

Susan Holt, president of the Fredericton Chamber of Commerce, said when a world leader such as RIM expands here, it further validates that the capital has a great workforce and a lot of opportunities for innovative companies to be successful.

She said the announcement regarding the two new buildings in the Knowledge Park this summer is a sign of the momentum in Fredericton's business community.

"We are certainly seeing it in our membership," said Holt.

"There is talk of expansion and there are people looking for space. Companies are growing."