Antigonish town councillors have asked to permanently join the Eastern District Planning Commission.
Town officials spent the past three years on a temporary placement on the commission.
Councillors voted to request permanent status during December’s regular town council meeting Monday night.
After, Laurie Boucher, the mayor of Antigonish, said there are plenty of advantages.
“It really did enhance our planning ability,” she said. “(It) gave us more capacity to be able to encourage development within our town.”
The commission provides planning, subdivision and building inspection services to the Towns of Antigonish and Port Hawkesbury, as well as the counties of Antigonish, Inverness, Richmond and Victoria
Boucher said the partnership, which costs them roughly $111,000 annually, helps their bottom line.
“They provide a service that would cost a lot of more, so a financial benefit definitely is there,” she said. “They have much more human resources.”
Boucher said it’s a mutually-beneficial agreement.
She said she believes the commission has benefitted from the town being a member.
