$51 million to share

By MARKUS ERMISCH Staff reporterOct 15 2006 http://www.kamloopsthisweek.com/
But Kamloops needs $60 million alone to build a water-treatment plant and expand the airport. After Ottawa announced that B.C. municipalities can now tap into a $51-million infrastructure fund, Kamloops' acting mayor expects Infrastructure Canada to be inundated with applications. And once the dust has settled, it remains to be seen how much federal cash, if any, will aid the Tournament Capital's two most pressing infrastructure projects: the airport expansion and the waste-water treatment plant. "One thing we know about these funds is that they're always oversubscribed," said acting mayor John O'Fee, who
is fielding questions from the media while Mayor Terry Lake is on vacation.Kamloops' two main infrastructure projects alone are expected to cost more than $60 million. The airport expansion is forecast to cost at least $20 million, and the waste-water treatment plant is projected to cost upward of $40 million. Smaller projects to improve water distribution and transportation may also qualify. "We have a number of projects on the go, in that regard," O'Fee said, "the most obvious being waste-water treatment for the whole city." The $51-million Canada-British Columbia Municipal Rural Infrastructure Fund, which will be matched by the province to bring total available funds to $102 million, had been announced earlier this year. Local Conservative MP Betty Hinton has repeatedly pointed toward the application website in her he-said-she-said wrangle with the Kamloops Airport Society about when federal funds would become available for the airport expansion. Until Thursday last week, however, municipalities were unable to apply for funding through the website. O'Fee and Hinton attended the official launch of the website in Kelowna on Thursday. Municipalities and non-profit organizations are eligible to apply for funds under the infrastructure program. At least 60 per cent are targeted for improving water infrastructure in rural communities. The remaining money is earmarked for transportation upgrades.