Government investment of $514,994 in the Municipality of Saint Sébastien for arena re-roofing

Canada-Quebec Recreational Infrastructure Canada Program Agreement

Saint-Sébastien, Quebec, Friday, February 26, 2010 – Residents of the Municipality of Saint-Sébastien will soon have an arena with a brand new roof, today jointly announced the Honourable Christian Paradis, Minister of Natural Resources and Member of Parliament for Mégantic–L’Érable, and Johanne Gonthier, Parliamentary Assistant to the Quebec Minister of Employment and Social Solidarity and Member of the National Assembly for Mégantic–Compton, acting on behalf of Laurent Lessard, Minister of Municipal Affairs, Regions and Land Occupancy.

The project, the total cost of which is evaluated at $772,492, will be carried out thanks to a government investment of $514,994. The governments of Quebec and Canada will each contribute $257,497 toward the work, with the Municipality of Saint-Sébastien assuming the remaining third, or $257,498, of the project’s costs.

Saint-Sébastien’s project primarily involves the complete re-roofing of the arena to solve water infiltration and condensation problems that have compromised the structure and sustainability of the building as well as the hosting of events.

“The Government of Canada is proud to lend its financial support to projects that, like this one, serve to improve the quality of life in our communities. The renovation of Saint-Sébastien’s arena is the fruit of concerted efforts by various local stakeholders. Our funding has been awarded under the Recreational Infrastructure Canada Program, an initiative through which we have committed to investing $500 million over two years in the modernization of our sports and recreational facilities across the country,” noted Minister Paradis.

“With this renovation project, I am delighted that our governments are working together with the Municipality of Saint-Sébastien to upgrade recreational infrastructure that will meet the needs of residents in a sustainable development perspective. These sports facilities will be getting a major facelift! We are thus encouraging citizens to adopt a healthy and active lifestyle,” said MNA Johanne Gonthier.

The governments of Canada and Quebec signed an agreement to accelerate the execution of recreational infrastructure projects in Quebec over the next two years. To that end, the Government of Canada will invest $76 million and the Government of Quebec at least that amount in recreational infrastructure projects carried out in cost-sharing partnership with municipal administrations or local organizations. These investments are thus expected to generate greater financial leverage, as is the case with the other infrastructure programs.

The funding announced today has been awarded through the Government of Canada’s Recreational Infrastructure Canada Program and the Government of Quebec’s Programme Infrastructures de loisirs.

The Recreational Infrastructure Canada Program, part of Canada’s Economic Action Plan adopted by the federal government in January 2009, is intended to stimulate immediate economic recovery and reduce the short-term impacts of the global recession. Government investment in this area will help create new jobs and improve the population’s health and quality of life. For more on this plan, see www.actionplan.gc.ca.

For further details on the state of advancement of the Quebec Infrastructure Plan, visit www.infrastructures.gouv.qc.ca.

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Sources:

Véronique Lachance
Political Attaché
Mégantic–Compton Riding Office
Tel.: 819-583-4500

Simon Bachand
Press Secretary
Office of the Honourable Denis Lebel
Canada Economic Development
Tel.: 613-996-6236