Canada and Quebec Support the Development of Access to Sports for Drummondville Residents

DRUMMONDVILLE, QC, July 12, 2018. – The Governments of Canada and Quebec know the importance of having good recreational infrastructures that encourage the adoption of healthy lifestyles, allow communities to be more inclusive and contribute to creating choice locations where it’s great to live.

Today the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Infrastructures and Communities, Mr. Marc Miller, and the Quebec Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, and Minister responsible for the Centre-du-Québec region, Mr. Laurent Lessard, announced that the governments of Canada and Quebec would each invest over $551 000 dollars to improve two sports infrastructures in Drummondville. This funding comes from the Nouveau Fonds Chantiers Canada-Québec, volet Infrastructures provinciales territoriales–Fonds des petites collectivités (the New Building Canada Fund, Provincial- Territorial Infrastructure Component – Small Communities Fund). The city of Drummondville will also contribute over $551 000 dollars, for a governmental-municipal investment totalling over $1.6 million dollars.

The first project consists of rebuilding the Woodyatt pool to bring it up to code and, in doing so, offer quality services to users.  The second project aims at extending a section of the bicycle path on Lemire Boulevard between Janelle and Jean-Berchmans-Michaud streets. This new section, which stretches over 1200 metres, will allow us to respond to residents’ active mobility needs.  Once completed, this project will promote the city’s athletic development by encouraging residents to be active.

Quotes

The improvement projects for the Woodyatt pool and the Drummondville bicycle path will give families access to sports facilities that respond to their growing needs, in addition to helping them stay in shape while having fun. Our government is proud to invest in recreational infrastructures to encourage individual well-being, community vitality and economic growth.

– Marc Miller, The Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Infrastructures and Communities.

 By supporting the city of Drummondville’s projects, we are showing our determination to provide the population with safe and accessible facilities, in addition to collectively ensuring that we have a quality, modern infrastructure. Adopting a healthy lifestyle is at the very heart of our government’s actions in the health care sector and it’s why I am so proud to support a project that will allow the population to be physically active on a regular basis.

– Laurent Lessard, Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, and Minister responsible for the Centre-du-Québec region on behalf of  Mr. Sébastien Proulx, Minister of Education, Recreation and Sports and Minister responsible for the Capitale-Nationale region

Woodyatt Park is a particularly welcoming location in our downtown area. It seems like the residents of Drummondville have increasingly taken ownership of this 7-hectare green space since this natural jewel was renovated in 2015.  A city’s role it to create happiness, and with these improvement projects to Woodyatt Pool, we are helping to make sure that our residents develop healthy lifestyles.

– Alexandre Cusson, Mayor of Drummondville.

Quick facts

• The Small Communities Fund is a joint federal-provincial program coordinated by Infrastructure Canada, in partnership with the provinces and territories. In Quebec, it is managed by the Ministry of Municipal Affaires and Land Occupancy. The program aims to offer Canadian municipalities with fewer than 100 000 residents financial assistance so that they can acquire infrastructures which, among others, will contribute to their cultural, sports, recreational or touristic development or to the protection of their public goods.
• The Government of Canada will invest over 180 billion dollars over 12 years in public transit, green and social infrastructures, commerce enhancing transportation infrastructures as well as those in rural and northern communities in Canada.  From this sum, 25.3 billion dollars will be dedicated to social infrastructure projects carried out in Canadian communities.
• Under the responsibility of the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Land Occupancy, the 2018-2028 Quebec Infrastructures Plan includes investments of close to 7.3 billion dollars in the municipal infrastructures sector. Including the contributions of the Canadian government and municipalities, over 14.3 billion dollars will be invested in municipal infrastructures across Quebec during this period.

Related Links:

• Investing in Canada: Canada’s Long-Term Infrastructure Plan
  http://www.infrastructure.gc.ca/plan/about-invest-apropos-eng.html 
• All Infrastructure Canada Investments in Quebec Since 2002:
  http://www.infrastructure.gc.ca/map-carte/index-eng.html
• Nouveau Fonds Chantiers Canada-Québec, volet Infrastructures provinciales territoriales–Fonds des petites collectivités (New Building Canada-Quebec Fund, Provincial Territorial Infrastructure Component –Small Communities Fund)
  http://www.mamot.gouv.qc.ca/infrastructures/programmes-daide-financiere/nouveau-fonds-chantiers-canada-quebec-volet-fonds-des-petites-collectivites-fpc/
• Plan québécois des infrastructures 2018-2028 (2018-2028 Quebec Infrastructures Plan):
  https://www.tresor.gouv.qc.ca/fileadmin/PDF/budget_depenses/18-19/fr/8-Infrastructures_publiques_du_Quebec.pdf