The Mayor of Owen Sound is thrilled with the infrastructure funding announced by the provincial government.
Ruth Lovell tells Bayshore Broadcasting News the funding was a great way to start the Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) conference.
The City is getting 1.5 million dollars as part of a 1.1 billion dollar announcement by the McGuinty Liberal government.
Lovell says the City will likely use the funding to replace sanitary and storm sewers and complete road repairs.
She notes the City already has a priority list and staff and Council will meet to decide how best to spend the money.
Lovell doesn’t see the City spending the money on transit or bridges.
She feels many City bridges are in good shape while others are being studied.
Grey County will also receive 2.1 million dollars.
Lovell anticipates the County will talk about spending that money to improve roads and bridges.
Lovell is also happy Premier Dalton McGuinty kept his promise to give any surplus funds from 2007-08 back to municipalities.
The Premier did warn municipalities not to expect the same announcement next year and Lovell is not surprised considering the downtown in the economy.
But she anticipates this funding will help the economy as the Premier hopes the news will create 11 thousand new construction jobs.
Every municipality received funding as part of the announcement.
