The Ontario government recently announced plans for a new funding program to provide $30 billion over 10 years towards infrastructure projects across the province. The Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program will be cost-shared between federal, provincial and municipal governments. Ontario’s share per project will be up to 33 per cent, or $10.2 billion.

Funding will be spread across four streams: Rural and Northern, Public Transit, Green and Community, Culture and Recreation. The first stream, Rural and Northern, is open to cities and Indigenous communities with populations under 100,000 citizens. There are currently approximately 500 communities that fall under that classification. Those communities have eight weeks, beginning March 18, to nominate road, bridge, air or marine infrastructure projects.

Nominations can be filed on the Grants Ontario website, which provides a portal to access information for applicants, handling application intake, review, nomination, reporting and transfer payment management processes.

“The Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) welcomes this federal and provincial commitment to infrastructure funding across our province,” said Jamie McGarvey, AMO president and Mayor of Parry Sound, in a news release. “Rural and northern communities depend on safe and reliable roads and bridges. They are essential to local quality of life and prosperity. Importantly, the ‘one-window’ approach that Ontario and the federal government have put in place will offer Ontario’s municipal governments an efficient means to access infrastructure funding.”