Saint-Apollinaire, Quebec - 27 March 2015
The Government of Canada is committed to creating jobs, growth and long-term prosperity, and has made unprecedented investments in building and improving infrastructure across the country. Investments in Canada’s infrastructure improve productivity and quality of life, and create jobs, growth, and long-term prosperity from coast to coast to coast. To this end, on March 27, 2015, Prime Minister Stephen Harper participated in a ribbon-cutting ceremony to mark the completion of the new multipurpose centre in Saint-Apollinaire, Quebec. This new facility will improve the fitness and well-being of people from Saint-Apollinaire and neighbouring communities in Quebec’s Lotbinière region by offering a multitude of sports and recreational activities.
The multipurpose centre, which officially opens to the public in June, is a new two-floor, 3,800 square-metre facility that will include a double gymnasium, locker rooms, multipurpose rooms, administrative offices, a parking lot and outdoor landscaping.
The Government of Canada will provide up to one-third of eligible costs under the Major Infrastructure Component of the Building Canada Fund, to a maximum federal contribution of $3.23 million. The total eligible project cost is estimated at $9.7 million, with up to $3.23 million funded by the province under the Quebec Infrastructure Plan, and the balance of $3.24 million being provided by the Municipality of Saint-Apollinaire.
Our support for the centre highlights just one of many projects undertaken by the Government of Canada to improve infrastructure in Quebec. Since 2006, investments of over $3.38 billion under the Building Canada Fund, the Provincial-Territorial Base Fund, the Green Infrastructure Fund and the Infrastructure Stimulus Fund have helped the Government of Quebec and its municipalities make infrastructure improvements for the benefit of all Quebecers. Municipalities in Quebec have also benefited from approximately $3.33 billion provided to the province through the federal Gas Tax Fund. Combined with investments under other federal infrastructure programs, Quebec has benefited from over $7.82 billion toward infrastructure improvements across the province. These initiatives have generated thousands of new jobs across the province and will provide economic benefits to Quebec for years to come.
Today’s announcement is also in keeping with the Prime Minister’s October 2014 announcement of the Government’s intent to double the Children’s Fitness Tax Credit and make it refundable to help promote physical fitness among children by making it more affordable for Canadian families to register their kids in fitness activities. The maximum amount of expenses that may be claimed under the credit will be doubled from its current limit to $1,000 for the 2014 tax year and subsequent tax years, and the credit will be made refundable effective for the 2015 and subsequent tax years.
The following represents a small sampling of the many projects that the Government has supported since 2006 to strengthen infrastructure and help Québec City and its surrounding area continue to thrive: the restoration of various components of the Fortifications of Québec National Historic Site, specifically the Kent, Saint-Jean and Saint-Louis gates, Maillou House, the Dufferin Terrace, the Saint-Louis Forts and Châteaux, Montmorency Park and the Governors’ Garden, the expansion of the Musée national des beaux-arts, the renovation of the Monastère des Augustines, the rebuilding of the Voltigeurs de Québec Armoury (formerly the Grande Allée Armoury), the expansion and renovation of the Pavillon de l'Education Physique et des Sports at the University of Laval, upgrades to the Cyrille-Delage Dam, improvements to Highway 40 in Donnacona, and the construction of an indoor soccer complex in Parc Chauveau.
