Advertise on podcast: ICBA Cast

Jordan and Chris revive the late, great ICBA podcast to discuss our new Trump Tariff/CleanBC report -- and our concerns over the BC NDP's efforts to drive the BC economy into the ditch.

In this episode of the ICBA Daily News, Jordan Bateman and Chris Gardner from the Independent Contractors and Businesses Association (ICBA) discuss the Supreme Court of Canada's decision to overturn Bill C-69. They view this as a victory for construction and resource development in Canada, highlighting the importance of faster project approvals for economic growth. They also discuss the ICBA's support for the government of Alberta's opposition to the federal legislation.  

In this podcast episode, Jordan Bateman introduces Jock Finlayson as the new Chief Economist for the Independent Contractors and Businesses Association. They discuss the Q1 fiscal report for British Columbia, which reveals a projected $6.7 billion deficit for this year. They express concerns about the government's increasing debt and lack of coordinated response to the housing crisis. Jock also discusses the negative impact of legislation C-69 on resource and infrastructure projects, hoping for a change in government or reconsideration of the legislation.   

🎧 ICBA Alberta President Mike Martens and ICBA BC VP-Communications Jordan Bateman were chatting Wild Rose province earlier today, touching on several topics, including: 🗳 Alberta's Political Landscape: We discussed the recent election and the commendable job done by Premier Danielle Smith so far in her new mandate. 🧐 BC vs Alberta - Project Approvals & Regulations: We compared the attitudes in both provinces. While B.C. constantly battles bureaucracy, Alberta has a more positive approach, learning from past mistakes and focusing on cooperation and environmental responsibility. 📈 ICBA's Growth in Alberta: Mike shared exciting news about ICBA's expansion in Alberta, including a new office space in downtown Calgary and the hiring of new team members. 🗣 Upcoming Event with Corey Hirsch: We're partnering with the Calgary Construction Association for a CEO breakfast on October 18th. Corey Hirsch, a former professional athlete and mental health advocate, will be the keynote speaker. His ability to connect with construction industry professionals and discuss mental health is truly inspiring. Tickets at www.icbaalberta.ca/ceo.

ICBA board member Shane Stirling of Epscan Industries Ltd. sat down with George Affleck of Merit Canada's Constructive Conversations show, and told his Fort St. John success story.   Epscan does construction, maintenance, electrical, and instrumentation work -- each of these services coincides with one another and allows Shane's company to stand out.

CONSTRUCTIVE CONVERSATIONS: Just ahead of the 47th anniversary of the Independent Contractors and Businesses Association of BC's founding, ICBA president Chris Gardner sits down with George Affleck to talk about the organization and how it's responding to the modern challenges facing construction.  

To kick off both Season 2 of Merit Canada's Constructive Conversations AND Women in Construction Week, host George Affleck chats with AWG Northern Industries president Laura Stanton. Laura is the third woman to chair the board of directors of ICBA.

ICBA's Chris Gardner was on CKNW Radio's Jas Johal Show yesterday to talk about mental health in construction -- and how ICBA's Workplace Wellness program is working to break the stigma around asking for help.

Gavin Dew, candidate for the leadership of the BC Liberal Party, dropped by the ICBA studio to chat with Jordan Bateman about the state of the race, where the party is at, how he's preparing for next week's first debate, and much more. Check out his website at www.gavindew.ca

ICBA's VP-Regional Mike Davis stops by the new studio to talk with Jordan Bateman about the latest developments in oil and gas, the Taylor Bridge, what's happening across BC, wildfires, and much more.

Steve Zahm of Procore Technologies -- a member of ICBA's 2021 Builders' Circle -- sits down with George Affleck to talk about Procore, tech, and the future of construction.

For construction to succeed, our industry needs top-notch suppliers and support. Fuelex Energy (www.fuelexenergy.ca) is one of those companies that is vital to the success of many of our ICBA members.   Jeff Adams is a Senior Sales Executive for Fuelex Energy, a local family-based company that is rapidly expanding across Alberta and British Columbia. He joined George Affleck for this Constructive Conversation.

Sean Hodgins grew up in the construction business and is now the president of Century Group, a family-owned business that was started in 1957. The company is based in New Westminster, BC but has recently been doing a lot of work in Vancouver working alongside local communities and neighbourhoods to add flavour and housing as needed. The mid-sized real estate development and management company handles its own construction while also managing enough income-producing properties to balance the tables. Over the past few years, Sean has seen a lot, but nothing compares to the past 12 months as he has watched the construction process and housing market flip-flop in terms of local government and red tape. He commented that for a bit at the beginning it was almost refreshing to work with inspectors and the government as they waived some protocols and practices due to COVID. However, now the protocols and practices are back in place, and units are roadblocked waiting on permits. Sean commented that he would "like to think there would be a better way to deal with this process" and that "expediency isn't caught with due process" which makes it harder to survive. Interestingly enough, Sean works constantly with local governments despite acknowledging the difficulties with regulations, with the final goal of creating purpose-driven housing communities. He strongly believes that "local government needs to lead an intelligent discussion" to get local communities more involved in the planning processes. For example, if a neighbourhood feels they want better transit options then they need to be open to denser communities, which can be a difficult but necessary evil to address. His dream would be for local governments to really sit down with their people to discuss what they want upfront instead of waiting until people disagree with building permits and turn council meetings into a "shooting match at public areas." In fact, one of Sean's favourite projects while at Century Group was the construction of 3 Civic Plaza which is the largest project they created in Surrey. They worked closely with the Surrey City Development Corporation and identified a need to add sophistication to the downtown and the need for a hotel because there wasn't much to offer in the industry-focused area. Outside of improving government engagement, Sean reiterated the need to get more women into the construction industry stating that "we are much better, but we have to be better-er." He explained that they need the viewpoint of women to create better projects, and the construction industry in general needs to "really embrace and make a welcoming and inclusive environment" because this should not be "an alpha-male industry."

ICBA board member Scott Jacob sits down with Constructive Conversation's George Affleck to talk about Jacob Bros and the BC construction market.

ICBA President and CEO Chris Gardner is host George Affleck's first guest on Constructive Conversations. For the past four years, Chris has led ICBA and actively takes on policy development work, ensures employees have access to health and retirement plans, and encourages new graduates to actively consider a career within the construction industry. He believes that Canada offers "tremendous opportunities for young people pursuing a career in the trades" and that "the opportunities in construction are significant." www.icba.ca