The township’s latest bid for provincial funding for a water tower in Drayton has been rejected – apparently because the municipality is too well managed.
In October, council directed staff to apply for funding for a water tower in the village through the $100-million Small, Rural and Northern Municipality Infrastructure Fund announced by the provincial government on Oct. 5.
At the Dec. 10 council meeting, finance director Yufang Du advised council the township’s application had been turned down because “other applicants have more challenging economic conditions.
“I’m highly disappointed,” Du stated.
“Is that because we don’t have debt?” asked councillor Neil Driscoll.
CAO Patty Sinnamon said provincial officials advised municipalities at this year’s Rural Ontario Municipal Association (ROMA) conference that those with the capability to do so should fund projects by borrowing, rather than expecting grant funding.
“We heard that loud and clear at ROMA – those municipalities that have the capability to borrow, should do it,” Sinnamon said.
“We have a very high assessment – so we’re not going to receive those grants. Both staff and council have worked extremely hard not to have debt and now we’re getting turned down for it.”
Mayor Bruce Whale pointed out the approach penalizes municipalities who have managed their finances well.
However, he commented, “If it continues this way we’ll soon be like the rest of them.”
The township previously submitted an unsuccessful application for funding for the ince’s Municipal Infrastructure Investment Initiative (MIII) program in 2012. The project was identified as high priority due to a need for increased water pressure to meet the demands of planned residential and industrial development.
