The Ontario government says it will spend almost $70 million to build water infrastructure in the City of Barrie and Springwater Township.
Barrie-Springwater-Oro-Medonte MPP Doug Downey announced Tuesday afternoon that Barrie will receive $34,973,624 to support the new Huronia-McKay trunk sewer and watermain, while Springwater will get $34,971,875 to expand the Midhurst Valley wastewater treatment plant.
The funding, which will help build up to 21,300 homes in the two neighbouring municipalities, is being delivered through the second intake of the Housing-Enabling Water Systems Fund (HEWSF). This fund includes $325 million to help municipalities build, repair, rehabilitate and expand drinking water, wastewater and stormwater infrastructure across the province.
“This funding will unlock opportunities in growing communities and support critical water infrastructure projects that will help our municipalities build more housing,” Downey said in a news release. “This funding will enable municipalities to develop, repair, rehabilitate and expand critical drinking water, wastewater and stormwater infrastructure necessary to support new housing.”
This latest announcement comes on the heels of Premier Doug Ford asking Lt.-Gov. Edith Dumont to dissolve the Ontario legislature, officially kick-starting a provincial election. The writ will be drawn up on Wednesday in accordance with the Ontario Election Act.
There have been a flurry of provincial funding announcements since Friday related to the local HART Hub, Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre, Stevenson Memorial Hospital in Alliston, Hospice Simcoe and south-end Barrie road work, to name a few and totalling millions of dollars.
With Tuesday's water infrastructure announcement, Barrie Mayor Alex Nuttall said the sewer project will support 8,702 new housing units.
“The sewer will also help us to create more than 11,600 new jobs for Barrie,” Nuttall said in the release. “This will make a real difference in helping Barrie achieve our housing targets.”
In the same release, Springwater Mayor Jennifer Coughlin said the funding will “help grow the economy, deliver better services and create complete communities where residents and businesses can thrive.”
She said the Midhurst Valley wastewater treatment plant will support 12,600 residential units.
Through the second intake of HEWSF, the province says it is supporting 23 water infrastructure projects across Ontario.
In total, Ontario is spending nearly $1.3 billion, through the first and second intakes of HEWSF, to support 77 water infrastructure projects that will help municipalities build approximately 600,000 new homes.
“Having a strong infrastructure foundation with connections to water systems is the first step in delivering the housing Ontario needs,” Infrastructure Minister Kinga Surma said in the release.
Through the Municipal Housing Infrastructure Program and the Housing-Enabling Water Systems Fund, the province says it is spending nearly $2 billion to support housing- and community-enabling infrastructure and build more homes across Ontario.