Last week, the Canadian government announced that they’d be spending over $9 million on 12 infrastructure projects within Alberta.
The 12 projects will be in 4 municipalities, which will be collectively contributing nearly $2.3 million in funding.
The provincial government, on the other hand, will be contributing $0. Despite not financing any portion of these projects, Prasad Panda, Alberta’s minister of infrastructure, was named and quoted in the media release:
Getting construction started and completed on these infrastructure projects will help ensure these Alberta communities remain vibrant and viable particularly important in light of challenges brought on by the pandemic. These projects are helping to protect the lives and livelihoods of Albertans by promoting healthy economic activity throughout the areas and supporting good-paying jobs for local workers.
Over half of the federal funding ($4.96 million) will go to 7 projects in Grande Prairie, which has committed an additional $1.24 million towards the projects.
The next largest recipient—in both funding dollars and number of projects—is Red Deer, who will receive over $3 million for 3 projects. They plan to kick in over $750,000 themselves.
Lethbridge and Leduc round out the funding with 1 project each, the former receiving $960,000 and the latter $200,000. They will be contributing $240,000 and $50,000 of their own funds, respectively, towards these two projects.
The federal funding is made possible through the COVID-19 Resilience Infrastructure Stream of the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program.
According to the announcement, the federal government has invested over $5 billion in over 400 investment projects within Alberta since the 12-year infrastructure programme was announced in 2016.
Here’s a list of the projects the funding will pay for.
| Location | Project name | Federal | Provincial | Municipal |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grande Prairie | North Bike Park | $240,000 | $0 | $60,000 |
| Grande Prairie | Emergency Response and Activity Centre | $3,200,000 | $0 | $800,000 |
| Grande Prairie | Hillside paths and trees | $194,021 | $0 | $52,179 |
| Grande Prairie | Maskwôtêh Bridge | $176,000 | $0 | $44,000 |
| Grande Prairie | Playground upgrades and surfacing | $240,000 | $0 | $60,000 |
| Grande Prairie | Trail resurfacing and missing links | $800,000 | $0 | $200,000 |
| Grande Prairie | Tree replacements | $108,160 | $0 | $27,040 |
| Leduc | Recreational Centre Performance Arena – Plant ice chiller | $200,000 | $0 | $50,000 |
| Lethbridge | Labor Club ice plant replacement | $960,000 | $0 | $240,000 |
| Red Deer | Trail overlays 2021 | $197,234 | $0 | $49,309 |
| Red Deer | Road/sidewalk rehab/pedestrian connections/mobility program | $2,618,560 | $0 | $654,640 |
| Red Deer | Red Deer 2021 asphalt sidewalk repairs | $188,232 | $0 | $47,058 |
