County municipalities receive $320,000 in "˜main street"™ cash

County municipalities will receive more than $320,000 in main street revitalization funding under a new provincial government initiative.

At the recent Rural Ontario Municipal Association (ROMA) conference, the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs announced the Main Street Revitalization Initiative, which will be administered by the Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) and ROMA, to support the revitalization of downtowns across Ontario.

The province states in a press release the initiative will fund a variety of projects, including landscaping or pedestrian crosswalks. Municipalities can also direct funding to local businesses for projects like improving the appearance of their storefronts by renewing façades or installing new signs.

Wellington County municipalities receiving the funding include:

- Centre Wellington, $52,207;

- Erin, $45,733;

- Guelph-Eramosa, $46,931;

- Mapleton, $44,960;

- Town of Minto, $43,388;

- Puslinch, $42,257; and

- Wellington North, $46,135.

Perth-Wellington MPP Randy Pettapiece issued a statement indicating he supports the investments, but said the government needs to do more.

“I want to congratulate all the municipalities I represent,” he said. “They will put that money to good use.

“Unfortunately, the province is still shortchanging small and rural municipalities.”