Using a healthy community framework, the citizens of Rayside-Balfour proudly and confidently implement a community driven agenda through committees and task forces, in partnership with the municipal government. Through this partnership, which is made up of single parents, young families, seniors and people with physical and developmental challenges, tenants receive valuable information through newsletters, workshops and Tenant Forums, which build awareness and help them respond to changes in non-profit housing policies. The tenants also receive assistance in developing the skills necessary to make positive changes in their family life and to build a strong community for their children. This community was born in the days of the great canoe routes and was famous as a stopping place, trading village, and port of entry to the Great Lakes. Today Parry Sound is primarily a tourist town, with the population swelling in the summer months with visitors from Southeastern Ontario and the United States.
Unemployment is the biggest challenge facing the community.
In the early 1980's the local plants closed, government offices and operations were phased out and the economy was forced to sustain itself on the seasonal tourist industry. In August 1997, community representatives gathered for brainstorming sessions to develop a plan for the social and economic development of the town. In 1998, their commitment bore fruit. Sail Parry Sound , a group of volunteers from Parry Sound and the surrounding townships, hosted the Shark Class Canadian Championships. This incredibly successful sailing event led to Parry Sound receiving the rights to host the North American Shark Championships in 1999 and the World Cup Shark Class Sailing Races in the year 2000.