Duane Hicks
Fort Frances will get $513,260 in funding towards $769,890 in improvements to the sewage treatment plant here, ranking among the hundreds of Ontario communities that will benefit from a $1 billion-plus federal-provincial funding announcement made Friday.
Mayor Roy Avis said he was pleasantly surprised to hear the news.
“We weren’t expecting it,” he admitted. “We put the application in. It was a project we had ready to go, and we were able to get the money for it.
“That’s great,” the mayor enthused.
The money will be used to repair a chain drive at the wastewater treatment plant.
Mayor Avis said the town’s $256,630 share had been anticipated and is included in the 2009 capital budget.
The federal and provincial governments are providing up to two-thirds of the funding for eligible project costs while municipalities provide the remaining one-third.
Elsewhere in the district, the Township of Alberton will receive two-thirds funding ($250,836) for a $376,255 road project while the Bear Passage local roads board will get a total of $54,122 from the two senior levels of government for local road improvements (it only has to pay $6,013 as its share).
The Town of Rainy River will get $1,333,334 from the federal and provincial government for a $2-million water infrastructure project.
Sioux Narrows-Nestor Falls will get $1,661,280 towards a $2,491,919 airport project while the South Watten local roads board will get $20,000 to help pay for a $30,000 road project.
Elsewhere in the region, the Township of Atikokan is eligible for two-thirds funding ($1,631,124) for a $2,446,686 airport project.
In a press release Friday, the two governments announced more than $1 billion for 289 infrastructure projects in Ontario communities with populations below 100,000.
These projects across the province will create jobs, help stimulate the economy, and improve the quality of life of Ontarians.
“Today we are investing in the heart of Ontario and Canada,” said federal Transport and Infrastructure minister John Baird.
“We are delivering results to Ontarians in these difficult economic times by building roads, bridges, and water systems,” he added. “These important investments will create jobs and help our economy now and for years to come.”
“Strengthening Ontario’s infrastructure backbone will boost the fiscal health of communities and improve the daily quality of life of residents across this province,” echoed Energy and Infrastructure minister George Smitherman.
“These projects will put Ontario on a more solid footing to tackle our challenges and forge a brighter future.”
The funding announcements were referred to in the press release as “steps to get shovels in the ground and to flow money faster for targeted infrastructure projects.”
“Investing in municipal infrastructure is an investment in jobs, productivity, and prosperity,” said Peter Hume, president of the Association of Municipalities of Ontario.
“Ontario and Canada recognize that Ontario municipalities are prepared to put this investment to work right away,” he noted.
“Building a strong and healthy country starts at the community level,” stressed federal Industry minister Tony Clement.
“In the midst of global economic uncertainty, these strategic investments in our communities show that our government is taking action to boost our economy and help create a better future for Ontarians and for Canadians,” he remarked.
“We’re creating jobs for families and making our communities stronger by investing in infrastructure in rural Ontario,” agreed Ontario Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs minister Leona Dombrowsky.
“This is another example of how the McGuinty government is keeping Ontario moving with targeted investments that matter to people in their everyday lives,” she noted.
