City of Ottawa to get $375M for infrastructure

Three levels of government announced Friday that the City of Ottawa's infrastructure projects will receive $375 million in funding over the next two years.

Politicians gathered at a podium in front of a parked backhoe on Ottawa's Preston Street Friday to say that each level of government municipal, provincial and federal would kick in $125 million to fund infrastructure projects in the city.

The money will pay, in part, for road work, improvements to the city's Transitway and library upgrades.

"Thousands of jobs will be created at a time when jobs are needed in our city, in our province, in our country," said Transport Minister John Baird.

Some of the projects that will get funding include:

• $47,700,000 for an extension of Terry Fox Drive in Kanata.
• $12 million for an expansion of the Centrepointe Theatre Facilities.
• $20 million for an extension of Hunt Club Road near Walkley Road.
• $65 million to widen Hazeldean Road near Terry Fox Drive in Kanata.
• $52,600,00 for a four-kilometre extension of the Transitway in Barrhaven.
• $38 million to construct a tunnel to connect light rail with rapid transit.

"You know, the deadline for applying was on May 1, and we're just a little past a month," Baird said about the release of the list of projects to receive funding.

"We've made the decisions province-wide. The lists are going to be out as we speak. It's now up to the cities to get the shovels in the ground."

Clive Doucet, the councillor for Ottawa's capital ward, said the city's shovels are ready, but he called the list of projects, "a grab bag of needed but small projects across the city."

Doucet said he had hoped more funding would be set aside for the city's rapid transit plan.

"For me, it's bittersweet," he said. "I'm having trouble clapping."

One project was slightly delayed by the announcement.

Antonio Medeiros, a construction worker whowas working near thebackhoe used as a backdrop behind the podium, said he was asked to put a hold on his work while the ministers spoke about getting other projects started.

"We just got in here this morning and somebody asked us to move move the vehicles out of the way and move some stuff," said Medeiros. "They stopped us ."