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BY DAVID FLEISCHER Stafl Writer Inthiseoonomicdownâ€" turn. you might ask ifwe canafiordtobuildthenew mfiasmmreweneedflhe real question is, can we afiordnotto? . All around us are ambi- tious plans for subways, roads and other compo- nents of building a gmwing region and all that ambition comes with a hefiy price best investment is in infra- structure, according to a report from the Federation of Canadian Municipali- “The fact is the study came out and said this is the way to go and the federal government was listening." Richmond Hill Regional Councillor Brenda Hogsaid. MsHogisYork’s representativewiththefed- eration, which lepresents local governments across Infrastructure plans good news for all municipalities "It’s not a new thing. We’xe not inventing anyâ€" thing.” federation president lean Pranault said. add- ing government spending spUrredtheeoonomyinthe 193OSand4OS. ‘ Italsomaybereassuring to local taxpayers watching the region approve a $1 billion capital budget for The report was comâ€" missioned by the federa- tion from Informetrica. an Ottawa economic research firm. last June Itwasupdat- ed last month, taking the economy’s downtum into account. It says each $1 billion the government spends on infrastructure creates 11.000 jobs. half of which are in the construction secâ€" tor. newsisthe While that idea might raisetheireoftaxâ€"cut-lovâ€" ing Conservative govern- ments. the idea struck a chord at the federal level. with the prime minister promising to cut [ed tape holdingback$3 billion of theBuildCanadaFund. It was a promise made after a November meeting with the first ministers and reiterated in the Nov. 19 throne speech. “Public infrastructure is vital not only to create jobs for today, but also to create the links between communities and regions tohelp generate jobs for the It also says infrastruc- ture spending is a bener economic stimulus than personaltaxcuts. were waiting for and we’re very pleased with the state- ment,” Mr. Renault said. Mr. Perrault, the mayor of Sherbroooke, Que, said his own municipal budget has projects ready to move forward as soon as federal funding comes through. Partofan overall $33-bil- lion plan, the Build Canada Fund required each prov- ince and territory to nego- tiate its own framework. While some finalized those agreements more than a year ago, Ontario's was not done until July. future," Governor General Michaelleleansaid. closer to building a new town hall â€"â€" at a cost of at least st!) million â€"â€" and whilefliatmayseemabmrd in these tough times, it’s worth remembering the lkxwerDamEmpileState The Spadina subway extension was the only local project affected and those funds are now in place. Seemmpage 124 mm 99.990300 AvemeGOOflveadoaMsheet setswilhbomspilwcases Q Sign up fer email or shop onlino at wwwhomooutflttenoom mmmmmsmmumavsmrummumnquumuum.nun ummmmnm mm'mm.nmumm,mmnm,mmm.mmw.mmmmm Ouoono'ng Conwablovahoass) ChelseaParkdoommadoount pillowcases 42? Staff Photo: Sandra Solon 'Smuflvflle’s Debb Ryder (left) was presented with $800 in Stoufl'ville Bucks by Stoufl'ville Sun-Tribune sales representative Janice Bannon (right). Ms Ryder won the firstâ€"ever Stouflville Shopping Spree contest, whichncttedhcrthecashingiftcertificatesthatcanbeuscdatanyofthe oontest’s participating memhants. weight loss” clinic Wmmtongsmmn Merlouoomneadooum SHOPPING SPBEE WINNER For More In formation See Our Advertisement on the Back Page Saturday, January 3rd Slouffville Sunâ€"Tn'bune I 'I‘hursdaJ (an. II 2009 Live better. Spend less. Webb vatue 59.99 Commonwealth window panel