So baseball fields, skating rinks, skate parks and water games will be developed or improved with this financial support announced on Monday by MNA’s Suzanne Blais on behalf of Education and Women’s Minister Isabelle Charest.
“I am convinced that these new infrastructures will significantly improve the quality of life for people living in small municipalities,” Ms. Blais said in a press release.
The assistance comes from the Small Sports and Recreational Infrastructure Support Program, which has been doubled to $20 million in recognition of its popularity. It targets municipalities with less than 10,000 inhabitants.
Phase 1 in Landrienne
Supported projects include the first phase of the renovation of the Serge Savard multifunctional center in Landrienne. This first phase, valued at $225,000, receives $100,000 in addition to similar assistance from the Quebec Gas Tax and Contribution (TECQ) Program and $25,000 of the holiday’s 100th anniversary surplus. The work is to restore the playing surface.
“That’s very good news. It’s a major problem for us. The surface has been working for years, so it needs to be completely redone. You have to remove what’s there, put the floor insulation and rubble back in, then redo the concrete surface. Currently, the rink has places where you have to walk up to six inches of ice to be level with the center. It has become very difficult,” Mayor Guy Baril says.
The mayor of Landrien Guy Baril. (archives)
Photo: courtesy of the municipality of Landrienne
The municipality must update its project and review the cost structure before work begins. This could happen this fall or fall 2023. The complete renovation of the Serge Savard Multifunctional Center is an investment valued at $1.3 million in 2020.
Water games at La Corne?
According to Mayor Michel Levesque, La Corne is also receiving a $100,000 cap that could restart a water playground project valued at more than $300,000.
“We hesitated a bit. We talked about this several times in the council. And so, last week, I knew we were going to get $100,000. We’ll talk about it again tomorrow night (Tuesday) in a meeting, in a private meeting, to see what the six other board members think about it if we sit down. We were all for it in the beginning, it was the amount that slowed us down a bit. We gave ourselves time to think, the snow still lies. But there it will make people talk,” said Mayor Michel Levesque.
Last year, the municipality of La Corne already did some work to dig the well, thanks to a $20,000 financial assistance from the Support Fund for Structuring Life Improvement Projects MRC Abitibi. She wants to take advantage of this project to also expand her Entramis Park, located at the northern entrance to the village. “We have a lot of projects, not enough money,” says Michel Levesque.