11 August 2006
St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador athletes will soon have a new
place to train thanks in part to a $4 million investment
from the Canada/Newfoundland and Labrador Municipal Rural
Infrastructure Fund (MRIF). The Governments of Canada and
Newfoundland and Labrador together with the City of St.
John's in conjunction with Sport Newfoundland and Labrador
and the Swilers Rugby Club today announced confirmation of
funding for the $6.3 million Newfoundland and Labrador
Sports Centre."The Government of Canada realizes that the physical health
of our citizens is crucial to our well-being as a country,"
said the Honourable Loyola Hearn, Minister of Fisheries and
Oceans and Minister Responsible for Newfoundland and
Labrador on behalf of the Honourable Peter MacKay, Minister
of Foreign Affairs and Minister of the Atlantic Canada
Opportunities Agency (ACOA). "This facility will provide
the province's young athletes with a place to strive to
achieve their highest potential."The facility will be constructed at Crosbie Road in St.
John's, in proximity to existing sports infrastructure
including the Swilers Rugby Club and the Wishingwell soccer
facility. The new centre will provide a much-needed
training facility for the province's athletes as well as
increase provincial sports organizations' ability to host
provincial, regional, national and international events."This new facility will provide an opportunity for our
provinces athletes to train and compete in a first-class
training centre year round," said Tom Hedderson, Minister
of Tourism, Culture and Recreation. "The new facility
supports efforts to promote physical activity and healthy
life choices and sets a new standard for athletic training
in the province. The construction of this facility
reaffirms the province's commitment from the past two
budgets, and we are pleased to see the federal government
come on board for this important initiative." The new centre will consist of two facilities: a new
building will house a boxing/combat room, locker/shower
rooms, and a gymnasium large enough to accommodate four
basketball courts; an extension to the adjacent Swilers
Rugby Club will include a strength and conditioning room, a
multi-purpose meeting room and three small offices."The City of St. John's is pleased to see this new addition
to the city's sports infrastructure that will add to the
efforts of our provincial sports organizations to attract
world-class events," said Mayor Andy Wells. "This project
is a true partnership and we know the City of St. John's
and the people of the entire province will receive economic
and health-related benefits and spin-off that will far
surpass our investment."The federal and provincial share is $2 million each. The
City of St. John's will provide a $1.3 million
contribution, with the $1 million balance being provided by
Sport Newfoundland and Labrador, the Swilers Rugby Club and
an array of fundraising partners. The $84 million, six-year Canada-NL MRIF Agreement is
administered jointly by the Department of Municipal Affairs
on behalf of the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador,
and the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, on behalf of
Infrastructure Canada. The Newfoundland and Labrador
Federation of Municipalities, acting on behalf of
communities, helps set the strategic direction of the
Agreement and identify priorities under the capacity-
building component of the Canada-NL MRIF.For more information on MRIF, visit
http://www.mpa.gov.nl.ca/mpa/mrifa/default.htm or e-mail
MRIF@gov.nl.ca. For additional information on this and
other infrastructure programs administered by the
Government of Canada, visit www.infrastructure.gc.ca.
FOR BROADCAST USE:The Governments of Canada and Newfoundland and Labrador
will each provide $2 million for the Newfoundland and
Labrador Sports Centre in St. John's. The announcement was
made in St. John's today by the Honourable Loyola Hearn,
Regional Minister for Newfoundland and Labrador, Honourable
Tom Hedderson, Minister of Tourism, Culture and Recreation,
and St. John's Mayor Andy Wells. The $6.3-million facility, to be built on Crosbie Road in
St. John's, will provide much-needed training space for
this province's athletes as well as increase the ability
for local sport organizations to host provincial, regional,
national and international events. The City of St. John's will provide a $1.3 million
contribution, with the $1 million balance being provided by
Sport Newfoundland and Labrador, the Swilers Rugby Club and
an array of fundraising partners. The federal and provincial government funding came from the
Canada/Newfoundland and Labrador Municipal Rural
Infrastructure Fund.
For more information, please contact:
Doug Burgess
Director, Public Affairs
Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
(709) 772-2935
Susanne Hiller
Director of Communications
Department of Tourism, Culture and Recreation
(709) 729-0928
susannehiller@gov.nl.ca
David Blackmore
Director of Building and Property Management
City of St. John's
(709) 576-8701
Rod Snow
Sport Newfoundland and Labrador
(709) 576-7101
