New to the Sault: Immigration services helping newcomers.

• Author: Kelly, Lindsay
• Position: NEWS

As newcomers land in the Lock City as their adopted home of choice, the face of Sault Ste. Marie is experiencing a change in diversity. But the city is quickly learning that in order to keep its new citizens, a support system is required.

"It's not enough just to bring them here," said Danny Krmpotich, executive director of the city's Local Immigration Partnership (LIP), "You have to support them while they're here and give them the necessary supports to have them stay, or else they'll leave, and that's the bottom line."

The LIP, comprised of 50 organizations that offer newcomers supportive services, is working on a number of initiatives to do just that. At disco verthesaultca, immigrants can find information essential to integrating into the community

Since its inception in 2009, the website has been translated into six languages and hosts a new video jibrary, just launched in June. In it, newcomers give testimonials about their experiences in their new community, a cultural orientation video helps familiarize newcomers with Canadian customs and language, and a video relocation guide offers advice for those considering moving to the Sault, explained LIP executive assistant Melissa Ceglie.

"It was developed to allow even a potential newcomer to see this community prior to coming here," she said. "It shows a lot of the buildings, so when you do have to come here and get your driver's licence, you know already what that building looks like."

Andrew Ross, general manager for enterprise services with the Sault Ste. Marie Economic Development Corporation (EDC), said working with the LIP allows the city to identify gaps in the labour market and business sector, and the EDC can help newcomers find their niche.

"Most of the time newcomers have come in, they knew what they wanted to do, it was just they didn't know anything about starting a business in Canada or Ontario, and that's where we took them from there," Ross said.

The crop of new businesses popping up across the city has meant a growing diversity in expertise and cultural representation, he added.

Their success results in a positive economic impact to the Sault, but he agreed that supports are needed, both to attract and retain newcomers.

"By developing that infrastructure, then it starts to help us do our job to attract newcomers, because now we can say we have these services," Ross said.

The LIP's work follows a 2008 population and housing report that indicated the Sault's workforce will...