Scarborough Southwest to receive funding for projects under the Recreation Infrastructure Fund

Recreational facilities are a vital part of Ontario’s fabric, and enrich our lives and our children’s lives in many ways.

Our government is committed to supporting these public spaces so that they may be enjoyed for generations to come.

This funding will help to build a healthier and stronger community by bringing residents together, whether as participants or as spectators.

Across the province, investments like this were made possible through the joint efforts of the Government of Canada’s Recreational Infrastructure Canada program and the province’s Ontario Recreation Program along with the resources of the many community organizations that have dedicated themselves to improving the lives of Ontarians each and everyday.

In our riding, the projects include work at Scarborough Gardens Arena, Highview Park, Warden Woods Park. The city will also be converting the Mid-Scarborough Rifle Club into a Youth Lounge.

Working together across ministries and across all levels of government is the key to providing the infrastructure projects that all Canadians need.

A 2007 review conducted by Parks and Recreation Ontario reported that 30 to 50 per cent of Ontario’s community centres, pools and arenas are approaching the end of their useful life. 

Our joint federal provincial efforts to ensure adequate facilities for sport and recreation are central, not only to improving rates of physical activity, but ultimately to improving health.

Participation in sport, physical activity and recreation provide so many benefits – to our physical, economic and social well-being. 

On the economic front, the benefits of this project are far-reaching to our community.

They’ll boost our community and Toronto’s economy and create much-needed jobs – jobs that will help to address some of the challenges Ontario is facing in these difficult economic times. 

This investment in our recreational facilities is part of a broader commitment to stimulate Ontario’s economy through unprecedented and targeted infrastructure spending.

The McGuinty government has committed to investing $195 million to upgrade Ontario’s recreation facilities as part of our 2009 budget commitment to spend $32.5 billion in infrastructure over the next two years.

These investments will help to create and sustain an estimated 146,000 jobs in 2009-2010 and 168,000 in 2010-2011.

Along with creating jobs the McGuinty government is taking several other steps to strengthen Ontario’s economy.  The tax reforms that will take effect July 1, 2010 are the single most important thing we can do to strengthen our economy.

These reforms are the right thing at the right time for Ontario’s families and businesses, and will allow us to keep investing in projects like this one.

A sport and recreation facility is much more than bricks and mortar. Sport and recreation facilities are community hubs, where people of all ages can become engaged in their community, explore their leadership potential, and maybe even discover an athletic talent.

For more information on the McGuinty government’s commitment to investing in infrastructure, contact my constituency office at (416) 261-9525.

Lowe’s Grand Opening in Scarborough!

On Tuesday June 23rd, 2009, MPP Berardinetti attended the Grand Opening of Scarborough Southwest’s only Lowe’s location at Warden & Eglinton.

This new Lowe’s location not only provides Scarborough Southwest residents with supplies and services for all their home renovation needs, but it also provides us with hundreds of jobs at each location — a great addition to the community and the economy.

The grand opening went all weekend and included lots of demonstrations, prize giveaways, and a how-to clinic with HGTV’s Bryan Baeumler.

Ontario will invest up to $15.8 million over the next two years, through the Toronto Lands Corporation, to implement necessary capital repairs, including renovations and upgrades for up to 32 Toronto District School Board (TDSB) pools, including the pool at R. H. King Academy in Scarborough Southwest. This will help to make them more accessible for broader community use.

This investment supports the recommendations made by the Aquatic Working Group, headed by former Toronto mayor David Crombie. This group was formed to evaluate the condition of 39 pools that had been slated for closure and to make recommendations on which pools were essential.

“We have always believed these pools are important community assets. I am glad to see that there remains an opportunity for these pools to continue to serve the citizens of Toronto,” said Kathleen Wynne, Minister of Education.

The province’s funding is contingent on the TDSB’s agreement to continue coverage of operational expenses. Other partners in the private sector and the City of Toronto will have a role to play to ensure that these pools remain open.

“Today’s capital investment supports the McGuinty government’s commitment to enhance sport and recreation facilities and their role in building the vitality and strength of communities,” said George Smitherman, Minister of Energy and Infrastructure

Ontario announced on May 11, 2009, a contribution of $195 million to improve and enhance community recreation facilities across the province through the Ontario Recreation Program.

Learn how the Government of Ontario is helping to build and revitalize infrastructure across the province.

Keeping Ontarians healthy is a key priority for the McGuinty government.

Lorenzo recently participated in the Ontario Power Authority’s Energy Conservation Week at Queen’s Park (May 17th-23rd 2009).

The OPA is also hosting a Count Me In And Win contest, where you take a pledge to reduce your home’s energy consumption over a certain period of time, and you can be eligible to win prizes like brand new appliances or a flat-screen TV!

For more information on the Count Me In program and how to reduce your energy consumption, visit www.countmeinontario.ca

Wednesday, June 3 was Tim Hortons Camp Day! Camp Day is the one day each year when every penny from coffee sales at Tim Hortons stores across Canada and the United States will be donated to the Tim Horton Children’s Foundation.

On Camp Day, customers can buy a coffee and help send close to 14,000 kids on the camping adventure of a lifetime. Campers aged nine to 12 years attend a 10 day summer camp session or a seven day winter camp session, at one of the Foundation’s six camps. All children who attend camp are selected by Tim Hortons store owners who work closely with local youth organizations and schools to identify kids who would most benefit from an experience at camp.

“The success of Camp Day would not be possible without the support of our loyal customers and dedicated Tim Hortons Store Owners and their staff,” says Bill Moir, President, Tim Horton Children’s Foundation. “By purchasing a cup of coffee on Camp Day you give kids who live in your community an experience to remember and inspire them for years to come.”

During their stay at camp, kids participate in a wide range of first-class programs and activities designed to build self-confidence, self esteem and leadership skills. The Foundation is committed to providing an enriched and memorable experience for campers, giving them confidence in their abilities, pride in their accomplishments and a more positive view of the world and their place in it.

Following a camp session, Lorene from Calgary, Alberta had this to say about her son’s camping experience: “Thank you for the wonderful experience that my son had with your camp. He will forever and always have fond memories of all the activities, the friends he made and the camp instructors as well as the beautiful camp location! Your camp was most definitely one of the best experiences he has ever participated in. He has been much more positive and
seems to have shed many of the insecurities that he had pervious to camp. I believe that the Tim Horton Children’s Foundation experience deserves much of the credit for the life and attitude changes that have enveloped him.”

About the Tim Horton Children’s Foundation
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The Tim Horton Children’s Foundation is a non-profit charitable organization founded in 1974. Funding for the Foundation comes from Camp Day, fundraising activities, special events, year-round public donations collected through counter and drive-thru coin boxes and other donations. Since 1975 more than 120,000 children have attended a Foundation camp at no cost to them or their families. For more information about The Tim Horton Children’s Foundation please visit www.timhortonchildrensfoundation.com.

(Story from Canada News Wire)

High Praise for Liberal MPPs for Centennial College Funding

Lorenzo and his fellow MPPs received praise in the latest Scarborough Mirror after the announcement of $35 million in funding to help revitalize Centennial College’s Progress Campus.

The article, as printed below, can be seen at http://www.insidetoronto.com/article/70005.

Centennial College will begin construction on a library and classroom building this summer thanks to funding announced on Friday, May 29.

The federal and provincial governments are providing a total of $35 million to the college through the Knowledge Infrastructure Program (KIP), to fund a new 104,600-square-foot building at the college’s Progress Campus in Scarborough.

The facility will include a full-service library, 22 classrooms, lab space and a large lecture theatre.

“It’s wonderful to see our colleges recognized by both Ottawa and Queen’s Park for helping to develop the advanced skills so essential to Canada’s growth,” said Ann Buller, president and CEO of Centennial.

The library is part of a $143.5-million rejuvenation for the college, which was built in 1977. The $46-million library project will be funded under KIP with $27.7 million from the provincial government, $7.3 million from the federal government and the remaining $5.8 million contributed by the college. The rest of the cost, approximately $5 million in site planning, had been previously received by Centennial from the Ontario Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities.

At an event to announce the funding on Friday, Centennial CFO Brad Chapman touted the building as a necessity given that all Centennial campuses are currently at “max capacity.”

“The need for a new academic building is long overdue,” Chapman said, calling the facility the “new face” of the college. “Colleges such as Centennial will be responsible for training individuals with the skills needed to compete in this economy.”

The Donald Schmidt-designed facility will add about 3,000 student spots to the college’s capacity and also create 450 to 500 jobs in construction and staff.

“People out there are saying they need new jobs and retraining,” said Scarborough Southwest MPP Lorenzo Berardinetti.

“We want to see Scarborough and Centennial right up there leading the way. Students who attend this facility will not only be more happy, but more skilled, more knowledgeable and more able to compete in a skilled workforce. That’s what we need.”

Construction will begin in August, with occupancy slated for September 2011.

Construction will also begin this summer on a new athletic and wellness facility as part of the college’s larger rejuvenation plan. It is expected to be completed in fall 2011.