$83.2M for Manitoba wish list

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Winnipeg cyclists are among the big winners. (KEN GIGLIOTTI / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS)

Winnipeg cyclists and pedestrians are the biggest winners in Ottawa's rush to dole out federal stimulus funds in Manitoba before the Liberals in Ottawa can defeat the Conservative minority government.

On Friday afternoon, senior Manitoba MP Vic Toews and several Manitoba and municipal counterparts unveiled $83.2 million of infrastructure projects in every corner of the province, funded by all three levels of government.

The biggest component was $20 million worth of dedicated bikeways, bike-and-pedestrian paths and bike lanes on streets in 37 different Winnipeg locations.

The massive infusion of new funds for "active transportation" -- government-speak for cycling, walking or any other means of self-propelled travel -- effectively increases Winnipeg's trail-building budget by a factor of eight and allows the Conservatives to answer critics such as Liberal MP Anita Neville and NDP-affiliated city councillor Russ Wyatt, who have complained Winnipeg has been left out of federal stimulus announcements.

To place the trail funding in perspective, Winnipeg has devoted just $2.5 million to active-transportation corridors, sidewalks and recreational paths this year, according to capital budget documents.

"I am awestruck. Twenty million is phenomenal. Twenty million is very big news when we were sitting at $500,000 (in annual funding) five years ago," said Janice Lukes, director of the Winnipeg Trails Association.

Other components of Friday's announcement include $32 million for water and waste upgrades across Manitoba, $16 million for cultural institutions, $14 million for roads and $1 million for solid-waste upgrades. There are 74 projects in all, ranging from an arts centre in Stonewall to new roads in Ste. Rose du Lac to a waste-water upgrade in Norway House.

In Winnipeg, the most significant new project aside from the trail funding was $4.5 million toward the voluntary amalgamation and expansion of Sturgeon Creek and Silver Heights community centres. The project, which has long been the top priority on Winnipeg's recreation-funding list, had previously been overlooked by federal and provincial funders for political reasons.

"We were No. 1 on the list and we're thrilled this is getting done," Sturgeon Creek community centre president Linda Smiley said.

The entire $83.2-million infrastructure kitty was put together with $27.6 million from Ottawa, $28.3 million from Manitoba and another $27.3 million that must be raised by Manitoba cities, towns and rural municipalities, possibly with the help of private funders.

Toews said "it took months of negotiations" to approve all 74 projects and promised more infrastructure announcements in the near future.

The Treasury Board president also claimed his government needed to put the funding commitments on the record before a new election is called. When Parliament goes back to work on Monday after its summer break, the government intends to introduce a budget-implementation bill that could trigger an election, if all three opposition parties vote against it.

If the minority government survives the week, it's unlikely to last beyond the end of September, unless the Conservatives make a deal with the NDP or Bloc Québécois. The Liberals have vowed to defeat the government at the first opportunity.

Future funding announcements may be jeopardized by an election, Toews said.

Winnipeg is expecting more. The city has asked Ottawa for $200 million to help Winnipeg Transit leapfrog over its bus rapid transit plan and begin building light rail. Winnipeg has also requested $34 million from Ottawa to help pay for a component of its $1.8-billion sewage upgrade.

Toews declined to comment about rapid transit, but said discussions about waste water are still taking place.

-- With files from Mia Rabson

bartley.kives@freepress.mb.ca

Projects to be funded under the Infrastructure Stimulus Fund

Community Centres and Cultural Infrastructure (more than $16 million in total eligible costs)

• Stonewall - Quarry Park Heritage Arts Centre
• Silver Heights/Sturgeon Creek Community Centre Amalgamation
• Lubavitch Centre
• Neechi Commons Community Business Complex

Local Roads and Highway Infrastructure (more than $14 million in total eligible costs)

• RM of Rosser - King Edward Reclaimed Asphalt
• RM of Reynolds - Lenchuk Creek Bridge Replacement
• RM of Langford - Culvert Replacement and Road Renewal on PR Road 85W
• Altona - 14th Avenue NE Hard Surfacing and Intersection Improvements
• Minitonas Bridge Repair and Improvement Project
• RM of Morris - Rosemor Industrial Park Infrastructure
• RM of Rosser – Grosse Isle Asphalt Paving
• RM of Bifrost - Municipal Road Upgrade
• RM of Swan River - Potten Drive Area Paving
• RM of St. Laurent - Municipal Road Upgrading
• Town of Ste. Rose du Lac
• City of Thompson - Asphalite Renewal Process
• RM of Tache - Gendron Road Redevelopment
• RM of Coldwell - Asphalt Paving
• PTH 2 Paving West Limit RM of South Norfolk to PR 244

Solid Waste Management (nearly $1 million in total eligible costs)

• City of Thompson Recycling Facility Expansion
• RM of Shoal Lake - Oakburn Lagoon

Water and Wastewater Infrastructure (nearly $32 million in total eligible costs)

• Niverville - Water Treatment Plant Upgrade
• Town of Ste. Anne - Sewer System Upgrade
• Winnipegosis - Lift Station Upgrades
• St. Francois Xavier - Cartier Regional Co-op Plant Upgrades
• Cooks Creek - Trans Canada Prairie Grove Drain Reconstruction
• Stonewall - Water Main Expansion and assoc Street Renewal
• RM of North Cypress - Brookdale Sewer System
• Macdonald - Sanford Water Treatment Plant Conversion and Expansion
• RM of Lakeview - Langruth Water Treatment Plant
• RM of Louise - LUD of Clearwater Water Treatment Plant
• Norway House Wastewater Collection and Water Distribution Renewal
• RM of Whitemouth - Elma Water and Wastewater
• St. Lazare – Water Treatment Plant Upgrade
• Emerson – Wastewater Treatment Upgrade
• Crystal City – Wastewater Stabilization Pond Expansion and Upgrade
• Gilbert Plains and Grandview - Town Reservoirs

Parks and Trails – City of Winnipeg (more than $20 million in total eligible costs)

• Eugenie/Des Muerons Bikeway
• Kildonan Golf Course Pathway
• Somerville to Seal Pathway
• Dugald Pathway
• Brazier/Roch Bikeway
• Assiniboine Bikeway
• Dakota/Dunkirk Pathway Phase I
• Sherwin Road Pathway
• Moray Street Pathway
• Omand's Creek BridgeHarrow Street Bikeway
• Ellice/St. Matthews Bikeway
• Bannatyne/McDermont Bikeway
• Grosvenor Bikeway
• Pritchard Bikeway
• Silver Avenue Bikeway
• Wilkes Avenue Pathway
• Sherbrook/Maryland Bike Lanes
• Machray Bikeway
• Seine River Pathway
• St. Charles/Flora Bikeway
• Jubilee Bikeway
• Dakota/Dunkirk Pathway Phase II
• Nassau Bikeway
• Hay Street Bikeway
• Lagimodiere Pathway
• Fleet/Warsaw Bikeway
• St. Mary Avenue Bike Lane
• Transcona Trail Phase I
• Archibald Pathway
• Waverley Pathway
• Berry Street Bikeway
• Kildare Avenue Bikeway
• York Avenue Bike Lanes
• Alexander/Pacific Bikeway
• Transcona Trail Phase II
• Bison Drive Pathway

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition September 12, 2009 A3