Provincial And Municipal Leaders Meet At Rural Ontario Municipal Association Conference
TORONTO: The Ontario government is working with its rural municipal partners to build housing, encourage economic growth and development, reduce red tape, strengthen the agri-food sector and promote rural municipalities as great places to live.
“Our government has a plan that’s building all of Ontario,” said Premier Doug Ford. “No matter the size of your community or where you live, we’re making sure every inch of Ontario benefits from our investments to support economic growth.”
During the Rural Ontario Municipal Association (ROMA) conference, Steve Clark, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, announced that the government is providing more than $936 million in much-needed funds to municipal service managers and Indigenous program administrators in 2023-24 and 2024-25 through initiatives under the National Housing Strategy to maintain and create more community housing. This includes an increase of over $23 million in funding under the Canada-Ontario Housing Benefit for women and children fleeing violence.
Minister Clark also announced the province is extending the deadline for implementation projects approved under Intake 3 of the Municipal Modernization Program (MMP) to streamline, digitize and modernize their services, including managing and approving applications for residential developments. Ontario is also extending the deadline for final reports for projects under the Streamline Development Approval Fund.
Minister Clark said: “Our government sees a bright future for rural Ontario with opportunities for growth, enhanced education and training, and increased workforce productivity – all while providing a high quality of life and housing options that Ontario families can afford.”
Lisa Thompson, Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs also announced the launch of a new intake of the Rural Economic Development (RED) program. Applications for the new RED intake will be accepted until February 23, 2023.
This year’s ROMA conference was held in-person in Toronto for the first time since 2020, and rural municipal officials had an opportunity to interact face-to-face with Ministers, Associate Ministers and Parliamentary Assistants. They exchanged ideas, discussed opportunities and identified ways to address some of the priorities facing rural municipalities, including housing supply, strengthening local infrastructure, tackling homelessness, improving mental health supports, economic development and more.
• Since 2019, Ontario has committed more than $17.2 million to fund 308 economic development projects through the RED program.
• Ontario is providing up to $28 million through Intake 3 of MMP to support 321 projects led by small and rural municipalities.
