BUSY SUMMER SEASON PROPELS INFRASTRUCTURE STIMULUS PLAN

Saturday, August 28, 2010

With seven months left in Ottawa's $4-billion plan, Richard Blackwell provides updates on some key projects. While a recent report from the Parliamentary Budget Officer said only 24 per cent of projects under the program were completed by the end of March, 2010, a busy summer construction season will boost that number sharply

RICHARD BLACKWELL

EXTENDED AIRPORT RUNWAY, CAMPBELL RIVER, B.C.

Price tag: $8.3-million

Federal stimulus: $2.8-million Campbell River, halfway up the east coast of Vancouver Island, is a resource town that has seen its economy hurt by the decline in the forestry sector.

Infrastructure money to lengthen the town airport's runway has helped provide work for local contractors, while setting the stage for future economic development. About $2.8-million for the $8.3-million project is coming from Ottawa's Infrastructure Stimulus Fund, along with a matching amount from the B.C. government and $2.3-million from a regional economic trust.

Lengthening the runway to 6,500 feet from 5,000 feet means a wider range of aircraft will be able to land at the airport, expanding its potential.

NEW PUBLIC LIBRARY IN ACTON, ONT.

Price tag: $4.1-million Federal stimulus: $1.2-million. A new library being built partly with federal infrastructure money in Acton, Ont., 60 km west of Toronto, should be complete by January, in lots of time to meet Ottawa's March 31, 2011, deadline.

"We are well under way," said Geoff Cannon, manager of public services for the Halton Hills Public Library (which has branches in Acton and nearby Georgetown). About $1.2-million of the $4.1-million construction cost is coming from the Infrastructure Stimulus Fund, with the balance from the province and municipality.

The new building is being built right next to the old one, which was a centennial project in 1967 but is not nearly big enough for the community, and does not allow access for disabled patrons.

SEWAGE SYSTEM IN DALMENY, SASK.

Price tag: $1.6-million

Federal stimulus: $500,000

In Dalmeny, Sask., a small town about 30 km north of Saskatoon, the summer's heavy rain and flooding threatens to derail an infrastructure project that is counting on federal funds. Ottawa has committed $500,000 to a $1.6-million sewage treatment projectbut it now looks like the work may not meet the March 31, 2011, deadline. The problem, said Dalmeny's administrator Shelley Funk, is that the town's engineers have been so busy in the spring and summer dealing with flooding that they were delayed in designing a new pumping unit. Ms. Funk said Dalmeny and other towns are lobbying Ottawa to extend the deadline to Sept. 30, 2011.

PORT EXPANSION IN BELLEDUNE, N.B.

Price tag: $61-million

Federal stimulus: $26-million

Belledune, in northern New Brunswick, is a key shipping point for bulk commodities, including wood pellets and zinc concentrate heading around the world, and coal arriving from Colombia and the United States on its way to a nearby power plant. A $61-million expansion of the port is under way, with about $26-million coming from Ottawa's infrastructure program. The money should be spent by the 2011 deadline, said port CEO Rayburn Doucett. "We're right on time and right on budget."

Over the longer term, the expanded port will be able to handle more cargo and a wider range of vessels, giving a boost to the region's economy, Mr. Doucett said.