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Town of Oakville preparing for Canada Day 2017 by David Lea Oakville Beaver Staff 15 | Friday, July 8, 2016 | OAKVILLE BEAVER | www.insideHALTON.com With Canada Day 2016 under its belt, the Town of Oakville is looking to next year after having submitted the details of 25 projects to the federal government in hopes of getting funding from the Canada 150 Community Infrastructure Program. The program celebrates Canada's 150th anniversary by providing $150 million nationally over two years to support the rehabilitation, renovation and expansion of existing community infrastructure. This funding was discussed during a special meeting of council June 20. In the report to council, Town staff noted to be eligible for the funding, the projects must be for local places that connect neighbourhoods and communities. Town staff said priority would be given to projects that contribute to modernizing Canada's infrastructure, provide long-term benefits to the community, have historical significance related to Confederation, or contribute to celebrating Canada's 150th anniversary. The program also requires that a minimum of 50 per cent funding for the projects be leveraged from other sources with priority given to projects that leverage 66.6 per cent or more. The investment will only be given for a project that can be substantially completed by March 31, 2018. The projects submitted for consideration by the Town include renovating the Queen Elizabeth Park Community and Cultural Centre to create a commercial grade kitchen that would be used for teaching cooking classes among other things. The estimated cost is $365,000 with Town staff requesting $109,000 from the Canada 150 fund. Another project would see the creation of a digital hub space at Glen Abbey Library at a cost of $600,000 with $132,000 requested Canada 150. Another project would see the rehabilitation of the Trafalgar Park tennis court to accommodate an artificial ice rink at a cost of $795,000 with $260,000 requested. Town staff said they purposely proposed a broad range of projects in order to improve the chances of being awarded grant funding. "We have changed our tactic a little bit with this submission," said the Town's Corporate Services Commissioner Gord Lalonde. "In previous programs what we've done is selected what we thought was the best fit and put one application forward. In this case we're going to apply for everything on this list, with your approval. We have gotten news from other municipalities that they've been awarded (funding for) five or six or eight or even 15 projects...We're putting together this list in the hope we will be successful in winning more than one project." Town CAO Ray Green said heads of the finance department, Parks and Open Space Department, Recreation and Culture Department and others were consulted and asked to put forward projects that were not funded and that conformed to what the Canada 150 Fund is looking for. Smaller projects, he said, distributed throughout the different wards and ridings. Oakville Ward 1 Town Councillor Ralph Robinson said some parts of Oakville appear to have more projects than others. Green noted certain projects, like the one seeking funds to renovate the Oakville Museum's coach house, are intended to benefit all of Oakville and not a specific ward. He also said in the event a project was selected for partial funding the Town would probably use its Capital Reserve Fund to cover the rest. For a full list of the submitted projects visit www.oakville.ca select Agendas and Minutes and then select Appendix A of the June 20 Special Council meeting. 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