Thank you, Mr. Chair, and thank you, witnesses. That's six minutes for questions and answers.
For the benefit of some of the members here who aren't from Nova Scotia.... I know all the witnesses will know this; they'll know the importance of the Lebanese community to our province.
My first question will be directed to Norm. Six minutes isn't enough time to talk about all the accomplishments of his family and the entrepreneurial businesses that he spoke about and about how the Lebanese community has changed our community for the better. You're seeing evidence of it outside of all these windows here, from residential to commercial development. They are a positive force.
I grew up here in Halifax, in a subdivision that was developed by the Butlers, an early Lebanese developer in Nova Scotia.
From the King of Donair on, I know your family has a lot of interests, but I'd particularly like to talk about the issue of residential housing development and the challenges that you see, not only as the Lebanese Chamber of Commerce but as an individual who has property developments. I know you and I have talked about that over the last years and about the difficulty of getting residential development done in any kind of a timely manner. Even though it's a private business, there's still a limit to how long you would take for your return on capital to get something developed.
Could you talk a bit about your experiences and the barriers that you find with the regional municipality in particular?