For Louise Gibson, this year’s Honorary Life Membership Award recipient, the best part of the land development industry is its people.
“They are relationship-people who want to work together towards finding solutions.”
Louise, who started her career as a planner with the Province of Alberta and City of Edmonton, would later join Carma Developers (subsequently Brookfield Residential) in 1998 – where she was instrumental in the visioning, master planning and development of Terwillegar Towne, Summerside, and The Orchards.
She credits the industry’s close-knit culture as part of her success.
“Whether it’s the builder, the contractors, the consultants or the competition – they help you to be successful in your business,” she said.
She joined the industry because she was interested in bridging the gap between high-level policy and implementation.
And when a job offer from Carma’s president, Doug Kelly, came knocking – she took it.
“As the planner working on Carma’s Terwillegar Towne, Doug said that he felt I knew that development better than anyone else,” she recalled.
“So, I took the job, and had an opportunity to build something. Planners don’t always get to do that.”
When asked about a fond memory in her career, she recalled a pontoon boat at Summerside.
“When we had our opening for Summerside, we brought in a pontoon boat and let guests see the community from the lake,” she recalled. “This grand opening was a highlight of my career. Summerside was the first project I planned from its beginning. I saw it through to construction and near completion.”
She said that all the people who helped – private and public planners, engineers, contractors, councillors, and residents – attended the event. It was a testimony to the many people that come together to make a project happen.
On November 5, come celebrate Louise and her achievements at the 23rd Annual Spirit Awards.