The Ontario government is investing $5,771,984 to enable the construction of more than 400 new homes in the Town of Gananoque.
Leeds-Grenville-Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes MPP Steve Clark was joined today by Minister of Infrastructure Kinga Surma and Gananoque Mayor John Beddows to announce the funding, delivered through the first round of investments under the Housing-Enabling Water Systems Fund. The fund is providing $970 million to help municipalities develop, repair, rehabilitate, and expand drinking water, wastewater and stormwater infrastructure.
The funding announced today will support upgrades to the Gananoque East End Pumping Station and will enable the construction of 416 housing units in the town.
“I’m proud of the significant investments our government is making to help municipalities with the infrastructure upgrades they need to put shovels in the ground and get housing built faster,” said MPP Clark. “Housing is a priority for the people we represent, and I commend Mayor Beddows and the Town of Gananoque for their work on this project. I remain committed to bringing additional investment from our government to help grow the housing supply in our local communities.”
The government is also allocating an additional $250 million and accepting a second round of applications through the Housing-Enabling Water Systems Fund, bringing the province’s total investment in the fund to $1.2 billion.
“By investing in drinking water and wastewater treatment facilities and connecting pipes to land, we are helping municipalities build more homes,” said Kinga Surma, Minister of Infrastructure. “Homes can’t be built without connections to drinking water and wastewater.”
“This investment by the government of Ontario is concrete proof of Queen’s Park’s commitment to support housing construction across the province and in municipalities of every size. We are grateful for the assistance in sustaining and expanding the critical infrastructure necessary to grow Gananoque into the future,” said Mayor Beddows. “Government support for projects of this nature is clear evidence of a strategic approach aimed at delivering long-term and enduring benefits for the residents of Ontario generally and, in this case, for the residents of the Town of Gananoque specifically.”
In this year’s budget, Ontario announced more than $1.8 billion in housing-enabling infrastructure funding through the $825 million Housing-Enabling Water Systems Fund and the $1 billion Municipal Housing Infrastructure Program, in addition to funding announced previously through the province’s Building Faster Fund.
In response to the significant demand for investments in water and wastewater infrastructure to enable the construction of more homes, and after consulting with municipalities, the province is transferring $275 million from the Municipal Housing Infrastructure Program to the Housing-Enabling Water Systems Fund to meet this demand. In addition, the $120 million from the Building Faster Fund that was reserved for small, rural and northern communities is being flowed to these communities through the Housing-Enabling Water Systems Fund.
QUICK FACTS
Details about the second application intake and eligibility were made available at ontario.ca/watersystemsfund on August 14, 2024. The second intake will provide an additional $250 million in funding.
The Municipal Housing Infrastructure Program will support core infrastructure projects that help enable housing, such as roads and water infrastructure.
Investing in key local infrastructure through programs like the Housing-Enabling Water Systems Fund and the Municipal Housing Infrastructure Program is part of the province’s capital plan of over $190 billion to build critical infrastructure and get more homes built faster to support growing communities and lay a strong foundation for future generations.
