Business Cape Breton (BCB) is sending out this invitation to "the business community" of the Cape Breton Regional Municipality on behalf of Mayor Cecil Clarke.

I'm not sure why this invitation is coming from BCB, although it is worth remembering that the mayor and the agency have a close relationship. In 2011, when BCB was the Cape Breton County Economic Development Authority (CBCEDA)*, CEO Eileen Lannon Oldford hired Clarke, who had just lost his bid to become the member of parliament for Sydney-Victoria, as a "senior executive adviser on economic development issues."

Clarke had a three-year contract which he left after one year because, as he explained to the Post in September 2012, he was "going to be working in the private sector."

By which he meant, "running for mayor of the CBRM."

But clearly, relations with his old boss are still good enough that Clarke can have BCB act as his social secretary.

Which brings us to the invite itself:

We'll assume the designation of both Wednesday and Thursday of this week as May 12 is a typo, not a sign that Mayor Clarke has learned to stop the spinning of the earth. We'll also assume this isn't a "1%" sort of event, because I'm invited. (Full disclosure: I received advice from BCB on writing a business plan and was added to their mailing list.)

But what is the point of this event? The mayor trumpets these budget consultation meetings as one of the signs the CBRM has become more open and transparent under his leadership, so why meet with business people first? Why not tell everyone about "recent developments" that will require "serious decisions?"

I'm sure it was just a momentary lapse in transparency. No doubt all involved will be pleased the invitation is now a matter of public record.

UPDATE: A corrected version of the invitation was sent out Tuesday morning, stating the date of the meeting is, in fact, May 11.

*For those of you who are sticklers for detail, the transformation of CBCEDA into Business Cape Breton looked like this:

In 2013, the federal government cut funding to regional economic authorities and agencies like CBCEDA and the Strait-Highlands Regional Development Authority in favor of "project-based" economic development funding.

The province replaced  the old regional agencies and authorities with six "regional enterprise networks" (RENs) based on “geography and common interests among municipalities.”

But while CBCEDA folded in April 2013, the Cape Breton Island Regional Enterprise Network, which includes every part of the Island except Port Hawkesbury, was not incorporated until October 2015. Presumably to bridge this gap, the Cape Breton Small Business Development Centre, under the leadership of Oldford, was established in June 2013.

“When CBCEDA wound up activity, the municipality gave the Cape Breton Small Business Development Centre the remaining $188,000 from the original amount to continue CBCEDA’s mandate until next spring, [Acting CBRM CAO Marie] Walsh said.” (CB Post, August 26, 2013)

In August 2014, the Cape Breton Small Business Development Centre became Business Cape Breton, still headed by Oldford. With the establishment of the CB REN in 2015, BCB became one of its two "delivery agencies," the other being the Cape Breton Partnership. BCB describes itself, on its web site, this way:

Through a service contract, Business Cape Breton will provide REN activities to assist Cape Breton Island REN parnters [sic] in guiding and navigating regional economic development while providing support to businesses, operating as connectors among economic development partners, supporting business growth and retention, and providing regional leadership on economic priorities components.