KAWARTHA LAKES-The City of Kawartha Lakes is on tap to receive more than $90,000 from a new provincial program announced today.
Jeff Leal, Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and the Minister Responsible for Small Business, announced the Main Street Revitalization Initiative, at the Rural Ontario Municipal Association conference in Toronto. “Main streets are at the core of small, rural communities and are home to thousands of small businesses across the province. That’s why our government is committed to ensuring they continue to remain vibrant hubs where residents meet, tourists visit and small businesses grow and prosper.”
said Jeff Leal, Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and the Minister Responsible for Small Business
According to a press release the $26 million Main Street Revitalization Initiative will support capital improvements in small businesses, and generate strategic public investments in municipal and other public infrastructure that will benefit small businesses within Ontario’s main street areas.
The program will be administered by the Association of Municipalities of Ontario and its rural arm, the Rural Ontario Municipal Association. This initiative is part of a $40 million investment over three years in the Main Street Enhancement Fund, which the government says will help strengthen small businesses in downtown and main street areas and enhance the digital presence and capabilities of small businesses through increased access to digital tools like e-commerce. “AMO welcomes new funding through the Main Street Revitalization Initiative and we are pleased that municipal governments won’t have to provide matching funds to access the program. Municipal governments know how to get things done. This funding will help move projects forward on Ontario’s Main Streets, helping to attract residents, visitors and support the business community.”
says Lynn Dollin, President of the Association of Municipalities of Ontario and Deputy Mayor of the Town of Innisfil.
Funding will be allocated to municipalities based on population size, using the most recent data from the 2016 Statistics Canada Census of Population. The formula includes an adjustment for those municipalities that have fewer than 25,000 residents. This adjustment ensures that small communities are provided an appropriate level of funding where their population figures would otherwise limit their respective funding allocations within the parameters of the program.
