MINTO – The Town of Minto will apply for funding from the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program to replace the Brunswick Street bridge in Palmerston.
Acting CAO Chris Harrow explained to council on April 16 the new federal and provincial funding program is designed to support improved and/or more reliable roads, bridges or air and marine infrastructure.
The fund is designed for municipalities with populations under 100,000. With an application deadline of May 14 looming, Harrow said staff was looking for direction from council on a preferred project.
While not a top priority, Harrow said the Brunswick Street bridge, which has been closed since Oct. 31 due to structural concerns, matches well with criteria for the grant.
“It’s another grant program that has a lot of restrictions on what you can apply for,” said Harrow.
“It’s a grant program that doesn’t really allow us to apply for a project or projects that we think is our number one, two or three priorities … you have to find a project to almost fit the grant program.”
Harrow added, “It’s too bad that you couldn’t have a more flexible grant program to be able to find our greatest needs and help it.”
Harrow noted wastewater, water and sewer portions of any project are not eligible under the program, meaning that for any road project in an urban area, the program would only cover the road portion.
“So the rest would all be on our ticket … so it’s really not the best bang for our buck,” said Harrow.
However, he added, “We don’t want to lose out on it because its an 83 per cent grant.”
Of the pending projects in Minto, “The one that best fits this program is the Brunswick street Bridge,” Harrow stated.
“There are other ones that are higher priority. It is still a high priority in the town; it is a bridge that is closed in our urban area and there’s no getting around that.”
Harrow also noted Brunswick Street provides an alternative route to the Palmerston and District Hospital, in the event of a closure of White’s Road.
Noting the grant criteria favours joint projects between municipalities, councillor Jean Anderson asked if roadwork on the Minto-Normanby Townline, which is on hold after being rejected for a previous grant program, could qualify.
Harrow said staff discussed the possibility with West Grey officials, “but they’re going in another direction” with a grant application.
“And that’s another one that won’t fit the health and safety aspects that they’ve put in this program,” the CAO pointed out.
The estimated cost of the Brunswick Street Bridge project is $750,000 to $800,000. The municipality’s portion, if a grant application is successful, will be 17 per cent or roughly $127,500 to $136,000.
Harrow said he anticipates successful applicants would be notified in late summer or fall, meaning the project would probably not begin until 2020.
