A new Canada-Ontario infrastructure stimulus fund for the not-for profit sector is designed to fail due to its application process, according to Ottawa Centre NDP MP Paul Dewar.
As part of its Economic Action Plan, the Government of Canada announced on July 28 the creation of a national $4-billion Infrastructure Stimulus Fund aimed at getting shovels in the ground for Ontario infrastructure projects in the next two years.
The application process, however, is overcomplicated, said Dewar. The application deadline is Aug. 18, giving not-for-profit organizations less than a month to apply for the funding.
“Community organizations need access to these funds to address years of differed maintenance or build much-needed new facilities,” Dewar wrote in a letter to federal transport minister, John Baird last Friday, asking for an extension on the application.
Many eligible organizations are not aware of the existence of the fund, and due to vacation leaves and a very tight deadline and many community organizations have found it unrealistic to apply, he said.
