Canada Child Benefit:
From May 2016 to May 2017, we issued 13,700 Canada Child Benefit payments that went to a total of 24,900 children in Nepean. The total payment amount was almost $6.9 million. This payment is vitally important as it allows families to support their children and enable them to live happy healthy lifestyles. Since 2016, the benefit has lifted over 300,000 children out of poverty across the country.
Canada Summer Jobs:
Since 2016, our government has doubled the amount of funding going to Canada Summer Jobs and have created 675 jobs in Nepean, with a budget of about $1.6 million. In the summer of 2016 we funded 219 summer jobs with a budget of $673,000, and the following summer of 2017 we were able to employ 226 people with roughly the same budget. This year we will be funding 217 jobs across 86 organizations on a budget of $684,892.
The New Horizons Program:
The idea behind the program is “seniors helping seniors by seniors”. We help fund different community organizations that apply for grants to support other seniors through outreach activities like recreational activities, seminars, tax programs and other events. In Nepean alone, we have allotted $65,000 for funding towards the program. Some of the projects we have funded include: $25,000 for the Ottawa Torah Centre for the project From Generation to Generation, $10,028 for the Nepean Housing Corporation for the project Seniors on the Move, and $21,467 for the Chinese Community Association of Ottawa for the project Forever Young Chinese Aerobics and Chorus. By funding projects for seniors in my community, I’ve been able to listen to issues that matter most to them and help them make an impact on the community.
Seeds of Connection Community Vegetable Garden:
This program was launched through the New Horizons for Seniors Program. It was federally funded with a total grant of $35,700. Seniors involved with the organization worked to develop community vegetable gardens at two different sites in Nepean as well as offered workshops on gardening skills, event planning and nutrition to promote volunteerism. The program included around 50 participants and benefitted nearly 200 community members.
Nelson House:
Nelson House acts as a safe haven for women and children fleeing abuse. The organization was provided with $5.2 million by both the federal and provincial governments. With this funding, the house was able to double the amount of existing beds and other supplies to provide shelter to a greater number of women fleeing unsafe environments.
Inspire Nunavut:
This Nepean organization reaches out to youth who live in the Rankin Inlet in Nunavut. The aim of the project is to support indigenous youth by helping them develop individual business plans to become young entrepreneurs. For the span of the eight-month project we obtained over $370,000 in funding to run the program.
Career and Vocational Evaluations Inc.:
CVE is an employment enhancement program that provides important services to the disability community, including help with medical, occupational, vocational and employment services. The office, which is located in Nepean, was presented with a federal funding opportunity of about $284,000 over the course of a year.
Algonquin College learning Centre:
In October 2016, the Federal government announced $21.9 million of funding to the new Algonquin College Learning Centre. The crucial funding enabled the library to be transformed into a state-of-the-art learning and entrepreneurship centre for all students and staff to benefit from.
Ottawa Public Library:
The new partnership between the Ottawa Public Library and Archives Canada is a great investment for Ottawa. We were able to obtain funding in the amount of $73.3 million over six years, with $4 million per year ongoing to support the construction and operations of this new joint facility. We live in a knowledge-based economy where access to learning and information is vitally important. This partnership will not only enable access to information and research, but it will encourage the sharing of ideas between members of our community. This new facility, which is expected to be built by 2023, will become a community hub for all Ottawans.
Ottawa transit:
The Light rail transit system will be very beneficial for our community, and connect residents from all over the city in a more efficient manner. The LRT project has also brought lots of jobs to Ottawa, ensuring steady employment for many workers across the city. The project, which is currently in stage two of development, received funding from all three levels of government. The project currently sits at a cost of $3.6 billion, with the federal government allotting $762 million for Stage 1, and $1.09 billion for Stage 2 through the Investing in Canada Plan. The remainder of the project is funded through the province and city. The LRT is expected to bring 70 per cent of Ottawa resident living within 5 km of a rail station.
Canada 150 Infrastructure program:
Through investments in community infrastructure, the Government of Canada is investing in projects that celebrate our shared heritage, create jobs, and improve the quality of life for Canadians. Out of the $300 million national budget for the Canada 150 Infrastructure Program, southern Ontario received $88.8 million worth of funding for community projects. Nepean’s Rideau Valley Conservation Area was one of the 730 infrastructure projects approved under the Canada 150 program, and received $32,000 of funding.
Affordable Housing:
The Multifaith Housing Initiative was given $10 million of funding from the three levels of government. This initiative provides 98 affordable apartments in the heart of Nepean, that house over 350 people, many of which are families with children. It’s important to me that we all have a place to call home; bringing more affordable housing to our riding is a step in the right direction.
Chapman Mills Extension:
In addition, Ottawa was given $156 million for infrastructure. Out of that budget Nepean received $1.5 million for the Chapman Mills Extension and Bus Rapid Transit. Expansion of the Barrhaven area has resulted in advanced development plans for the vacant land area around Barrhaven Town Centre. The investments under this include a “Park and Ride”, new busses and a new bus shelter.
Innovation Centre at Bayview Yards
I took part in the announcement that the Canadian government decided to contribute $8 million to the Innovation Centre at Bayview Yards. It is an important support centre for all of Ottawa’s knowledge-based companies in creating and maintaining quality high-paying jobs.
ImmunizeCA
In April of 2016, the federal government announced $3.5 million in funding over three years for Phase Two of the popular immunization mobile app, ImmunizeCA. This free, bilingual innovative app helps Canadians keep their immunization information close at hand, and will be enhanced in a collaborative project led by the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute with support from the Canadian Public Health Association and Immunize Canada.
RANOVUS
In June of 2017, I joined the parliamentary secretary for Innovation, Science and Economic Development at RANOVUS in Nepean to announce $8 million in funding under Sustainable Development Technology Canada for clean technology projects in Ontario. RANOVUS is a Nepean-based industry leader in telecommunications technology and is working on developing technology to make cloud computing more energy efficient.
Security Infrastructure Program:
This program is designed to support the implementation of projects to help communities with a demonstrated history of being victimized by hate-motivated crime through the enhancement of their security infrastructure. I assisted in bringing the Ottawa Torah Centre, a Nepean Synagogue, funding after their Synagogue was vandalized. As a result they received over $65,000 to repair the damages incurred to the building as well as install means of security to ensure a similar attack would not be replicated. No one should feel victimized or unsafe in their community, that’s why I worked hard to see that this kind of event would never happen again to the OTC.
