The governments of Canada and British Columbia continue to invest in local infrastructure during this unprecedented time to meet the needs of communities across the province, enhance people’s quality of life, and support economic recovery from COVID-19.

Today, Andy Fillmore, Parliamentary Secretary to the Honourable Catherine McKenna, Minister of Infrastructure and Communities, Katrine Conroy, Member of British Columbia’s Legislative Assembly for Kootenay West, on behalf of the Honourable Josie Osborne, Minister of Municipal Affairs, and Lisa Pasin, Mayor of Trail, announced funding to retrofit the Trail Memorial Centre’s library to support local recreational needs.

The 72-year-old Trail Memorial Centre is an important community hub in the downtown area, providing diverse recreational programming to local residents. The library’s renovation will provide more space for community and fitness programming and support Trail’s vision for a revitalized downtown.

The Government of Canada and the Province of British Columbia are investing $672,000 through the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program’s new COVID-19 Resilience Infrastructure Stream. Canada is contributing $537,600, and B.C. is contributing $134,400

Quotes

“Over the course of the pandemic it has become clear that we need to prioritize access to infrastructure and programming that meet citizens’ needs and expectations to lead healthy and active lifestyles. The federal government’s investment of $537,000 in the Trail Memorial Centre retrofit will help the city provide more recreational options, and give residents a place to come together safely. Canada’s infrastructure plan invests in thousands of projects, creates good jobs across Canada, and builds cleaner, more inclusive communities.”

Andy Fillmore, Parliamentary Secretary to the Honourable Catherine McKenna, Minister of Infrastructure and Communities

“Locally-led recreation and programming is one of the best, most affordable ways for everyone in the community to have access to physical fitness and children’s activities. Retrofitting the library in Trail is a great way to create opportunity for people to access these kinds of programs. I am glad to see our government partnering with the City of Trail and federal government to make this a reality.”

Katrine Conroy, Member of British Columbia’s Legislative Assembly for Kootenay West

“The City of Trail is very grateful to receive provincial and federal grant funding to help complete the new multi-purpose space in the Trail Memorial Centre.  Since the onset of the pandemic, we have seen an increased demand for larger indoor gathering areas and we are excited to offer our community enhanced services inside our largest recreational facility.”

Lisa Pasin, Mayor of Trail

Quick facts

• To support Canadians and communities during the COVID-19 pandemic, a COVID-19 Resilience Infrastructure Stream has been added to the over $33-billion Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program to help fund pandemic-resilient infrastructure. Existing program streams have also been adapted to include more eligible project categories. 

• Under the COVID-19 Resilience Infrastructure Stream, the federal cost share for public infrastructure projects is up to 80% in the provinces, and up to 100% in the territories and for projects intended for Indigenous communities. For projects that are federally funded at 80%, British Columbia contributed 20% to provide a total cost share of 100%.

• In B.C., the federal government has invested more than $4.4 billion in over 580 infrastructure projects since 2015 under the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program

Associated links

Investing in COVID-19 Community Resilience

https://www.infrastructure.gc.ca/plan/covid-19-resilience-eng.html

Investing in Canada: B.C.’s COVID-19 Resilience Infrastructure Stream

www.gov.bc.ca/Investing-in-Canada-Infrastructure-Program

Federal infrastructure investments in British Columbia

https://www.infrastructure.gc.ca/plan/prog-proj-bc-eng.html