Representatives from many communities affected by flooding last June must have felt some relief after getting official word Friday that they would receive more funding from the province.
At the Northwestern Ontario Municipal Association meeting here, Municipal Affairs and Housing minister David Young did the honours of signing a novelty-sized cheque in the amount $1.68 million—to be split between 12 municipalities—before handing it over to Mayor Glenn Witherspoon as a representative of the host community for the conference.
“When disasters happen, you always think that you have a rainy day fund. Bit it’s never big enough,” said Mayor Witherspoon.
“I know [the flooding] caused havoc with your infrastructure. I know your tourist business suffered a great blow—one from which you’re still recovering,” said Young.
“The Eves government is committed to helping communities recover from the disaster damages,” he added. “This additional funding helps fulfill our commitment—providing needed assistance to affected communities.”
This assistance, which was applied for through the Ontario Disaster Relief Assistance Program (ODRAP), brings the area’s relief funding total to $3.1 million.
“I’m proud of how quickly our government came to the aid of municipalities in the flooded areas,” remarked Northern Development and Mines minister Jim Wilson.
“Together with local government leaders, we are getting to the job of building strong and prosperous northern communities,” he added.
Rainy River is receiving the bulk of the funding ($540,489), followed by Chapple ($228,277), Machin ($213,010), Dawson ($154,696), Lake of the Woods ($131,073), and Fort Frances ($101,177).
Rounding out the recipients were Ignace ($75,457), Alberton ($63,552), Morley ($59,656), La Vallee ($57,949), Emo ($49,194), and Sioux Narrows-Nestor Falls ($8,251).
While some of these municipalities may receive future funding, this second payment will be the last for Alberton, Dawson, Emo, Lake of the Woods, La Vallee, and Sioux Narrows-Nestor Falls.
Atikokan, which received funding last September along with the 12 other municipalities, did not get any this time around.
Extensive areas in the region experienced severe flooding last June that cause serious damage to local infrastructure.
The province declared the entire Rainy River District—as well as three municipalities in Kenora District—a disaster area and therefore eligible for ODRAP funding.
Last September, the 13 eligible municipalities received a total of $1.5 million in interim payments to cover public damages.
The provincial government also made financial assistance available to individuals, farmers, and small business who suffered uninsured damages. ODRAP covers uninsured private losses at up to 90 percent.
The Northwestern Ontario disaster relief committee has processed all approved claims and paid out more than $3.5 million, including almost $500,000 in advance payments for those in immediate need.
In related news, the NOMA conference, which began with registration last Thursday and carried through Friday and Saturday, drew about 200 delegates from across the region and elsewhere in the province.
Aside from regular business tackled by the NOMA board of directors, the 57th-annual general meeting featured:
•Nicola Crawhall, senior advisor with the Association of Municipalities of Ontario, and barrister/solicitor Fred Dean discussing “Overseeing Public Drinking Water Systems in the Post-Walkerton Era”;
•a panel discussion entitled, “What are We Doing About Economic Development in Northwestern Ontario and Our Vision and Role in the Future” (this discussion included Cam Clark, assistant deputy minister for the Ministry of Northern Development and Mines, Geoff Gillon, president of the Northwestern Ontario Development Network, and Tannis Drysdale, president of the Northwestern Associated Chambers of Commerce);
•a talk by Dave Sinclair, president of and CEO of Kenora Hydro Electric Corporation Ltd., entitled “Impact of Increased Energy Costs”;
•Nancy Naylor, assistant deputy minister of the Ministry of Finance, and Carl Isenberg, vice-president of customer relations for the Municipal Property Assessment Corp., presenting on “Taxation Issues”;
•Dr. Fred Gilbert, president of Lakehead University, spoke on the “State of the University”;
•Gwen Dubois-Wing, executive director of the Northwestern Ontario District Health Council, presented on the “Northwestern Ontario Human Resources Study”;
•a lecture by Jeff Fisher, AMO senior policy advisor, James Douglas, senior policy advisor, building and development branch, Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing, and Rick Hallam, chief building official and Superintendent of Planning and Development for the Town of Fort Frances, on “What’s New in the Building Code?”;
•Frank Lopez, a partner in Thunder Bay-based Ernst & Young, talked about “The New Role of the Auditor”; and
•a presentation by Dr. Roger Strasser, founding dean of the Northern Ontario Medical School.
Fort Frances Times
Local News from Across the Rainy River District
