News
Ontario upgrading roads, bridges and water systems across Eastern Ontario

October 6, 2016 – Ontario is supporting jobs and economic growth in the Eastern region by investing in upgrades and repairs for community infrastructure, including roads, bridges, water and wastewater systems.

Through the Ontario Community Infrastructure Fund (OCIF), the province is providing funding to municipalities in the following counties in Eastern Ontario:

•Lanark ($5,410,110)
•Leeds and Grenville ($8,155,829)
•Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry ($6,882,913)

In total, 112 communities in Eastern Ontario will receive funding to support upgrades to critical local infrastructure over the next three years through OCIF.

Ontario is making the largest investment in public infrastructure in the province’s history – about $160 billion over 12 years, which is supporting 110,000 jobs every year across the province, with projects such as roads, bridges, transit systems, schools and hospitals. In 2015, the province announced support for more than 475 projects that are helping to keep people and goods moving, connect communities and improve quality of life. To learn more about infrastructure projects in your community, go to Ontario.ca/BuildON.

Investing in municipal infrastructure is part of the government’s economic plan to build Ontario up and deliver on its number-one priority to grow the economy and create jobs. The four-part plan includes helping more people get and create the jobs of the future by expanding access to high-quality college and university education. The plan is making the largest infrastructure investment in hospitals, schools, roads, bridges and transit in Ontario’s history and is investing in a low-carbon economy driven by innovative, high-growth, export-oriented businesses. The plan is also helping working Ontarians achieve a more secure retirement.

Quick facts
•Ontario is tripling its investments through OCIF, from $100 million in 2015-16 to $300 million in 2018-19. Of the $300 million allocated for 2018-19, the province will allocate $100 million for municipalities to apply to invest in crucial infrastructure projects, and $200 million for predictable, formula-based funding.

•Municipalities receive funding based on their economic conditions and their infrastructure needs. These funds can be used by communities to upgrade local roads, bridges and water and wastewater facilities. In addition, municipalities now also have the option to bank their funding for up to five years, allowing them more local control over long-term planning and the ability to carry out larger critical infrastructure projects.

•OCIF is part of Moving Ontario Forward, the government’s plan to invest $31.5 billion over 10 years in transit, transportation and other priority infrastructure across the province.

•OCIF supports projects in municipalities with a population of less than 100,000 as of the 2011 census, as well as municipalities that are located in Northern or rural Ontario.

•A 2015 report by the Broadbent Institute and the Centre for Spatial Economics found that, on average, investing $1 in public infrastructure in Canada raises GDP by $1.43 in the short term and up to $3.83 in the long term.