Windsor council approves $57M grant application for riverfront, civic plaza projects

Windsor city council agreed Wednesday to submit an application under the investing in infrastructure program. The request is for $57 million $20 million of which will have to come from the City of Windsor.

"That's only a quarter of the entire project," said Windsor mayor Drew Dilkens. That money would come from the seven-year capital budget and from money earmarked for the Paul Martin building.

"It's reallocating money that was set aside for Paul Martin," said Dilkens. "It was already approved in the capital budget."

The deadline for the application is Nov. 12, and Dilkens expect there to be a lot of interest from communities across Canada.

"We have to set the committee in motion and see what the community wants," said Dilkens. "We'll be working hard to make sure our projects get in front of the people who need to see them."

Dilkens said there won't be money to fund every single project requested by each community. He wasn't sure if the program will provide partial funding, but are planning on fully-funded projects.

"We're not doing something new, we're doing things already approved," said Dilkens, with the exception of the civic plaza project.

The major project is for civic plaza to link to the riverfront parks, which would create a "public access point to the beloved riverfront," said the city's proposal.

The project and grant application includes:

• Civic square plaza, which will occupy the footprint of the old city hall and serve as a location for public gatherings, ceremonies and announcements.
• The civic esplanade, a pedestrian corridor from the civic square plaza to Riverside Drive.
• A pedestrian crossing at Riverside Drive.
• Upgrades to Festival Plaza.
• Great Western Park, an Indigenous historical site in Windsor near the Walkerville neighbourhood.
• Walkerville parkette and gateway, which will adjust vehicular and pedestrian movement into the neighbourhood.

Council approved spending $11,000 to write the grant application.