Sainte-Anne-des-Plaines, Quebec, March 29, 2010 – The Honourable Christian Paradis. Minister of Natural Resources and Member of Parliament for Mégantic-L’Érable, today joined Vincent Auclair, Deputy Whip for the Government of Quebec and Member of the National Assembly for Vimont, acting on behalf of Laurent Lessard, Minister of Municipal Affairs, Regions and Land Occupancy, in announcing that the City of Sainte-Anne-des-Plaines will receive $4,077,548 in joint government financial assistance under the Communities Component of the Building Canada Fund – Quebec to upgrade three city access roads.
The Sainte-Anne-des-Plaines project involves repairing nearly 12 kilometres of rural access roads to the city, namely, Rang Lepage, Chemin Trait-Carré and Montée Laramée. Built at the turn of the 20th century, these roads cannot handle the increased traffic and their maintenance consumes a large part of the city’s budget.
“The project to repair three rural roads in Sainte-Anne-des-Plaines will benefit its residents and businesses alike. In supporting this project, we are ensuring that the population enjoys the high quality of life that has become our country’s trademark. Indeed, the Government of Canada is committed to equipping every community with modern facilities to ensure citizens’ health and safety. The renewal of public infrastructure is part of a broad action plan that will enable us to thrive and prosper in a healthy environment,” stated Minister Paradis.
“By participating in this project, the Government of Quebec is moving forward to ensure the province’s municipalities have infrastructure that meets their unique realities while fostering sustainable development. By injecting new capital into the Quebec Infrastructure Plan, our government is looking to accelerate the execution of numerous infrastructure projects throughout the province, like this one in Sainte-Anne-des-Plaines, in an effort to improve Quebecers’ well-being, create jobs and promote a high-performance economy. In this way, we are leaving the municipality a legacy of quality infrastructure with which to face the challenges of the future,” added MNA Vincent Auclair.
“Criss-crossed by country roads, Sainte-Anne-des-Plaines needs financial assistance from the higher levels of government to improve its road infrastructure. The amount received today through the Communities Component of the Building Canada Fund – Quebec to repair our access roads, together with the grant we obtained through PRECO for René Street, give an indispensable hand up to our taxpayers and are welcome news for motorists,” said Mayor Guy Charbonneau.
Completion of this project will necessitate an overall eligible investment of $6,116,321. The government of Quebec and Canada will each contribute $2,038,774 toward the work, for a total of $4,077,548 in combined government funding, with the City of Sainte-Anne-des-Plaines assuming the remaining third, or $2,038,773, of the project’s costs.
The Communities Component of the Building Canada Fund – Quebec is a cost-sharing initiative aimed at funding infrastructure projects in communities with fewer than 100,000 inhabitants. These communities are thus able to use this assistance to improve infrastructure that is in major need of revitalization, including water treatment plants, water supply systems and cultural and sports centres.
For provinces, like Quebec, that have committed all of their funding under the Communities Component, the Government of Canada’s Economic Action Plan provides for up to $500 million in additional funding for projects that will be completed by March 31, 2011.
In Quebec, a joint federal-provincial contribution of $232 million will be used to fund 106 infrastructure projects.
The contribution from the Government of Canada has been awarded through Canada’s Economic Action Plan. To learn more about this plan, visit www.actionplan.gc.ca.
For further information on the Government of Quebec’s Quebec Infrastructure Plan, see www.infrastructures.gouv.qc.ca.
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Sources:
Simon Bachand
Press Secretary
Office of the Honourable Denis Lebel
Canada Economic Development:
Tel.: 613-996-6236
Sylvain Bourassa
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of Municipal Affairs, Regions and Land Occupancy
Tel.: 418-691-2050
