Good afternoon.
Thank you very much.
My name is Monique Collette and I am president of the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency. I really appreciate the opportunity to appear before you today in response to this committee's recent motion to discuss the supplementary estimates related to regional development agencies and departments.
I'm accompanied by our vice-president of finance and corporate services, Denise Frenette, and if you'll allow me, I will take a few minutes to provide you with a bit of background on ACOA.
ACOA was created in 1987 to work with Atlantic Canadians to help build a more innovative, productive, and competitive economy in Atlantic Canada.
As a new model for economic development, ACOA was designed to ensure that decision-making resided in the region. This model is characterized by a decentralized approach, with the headquarters in Moncton, New Brunswick; a major office in each of the four Atlantic provinces; smaller satellite offices in each province; and an office here in Ottawa.
Together with our many partners in economic development, ACOA works to strengthen the Atlantic economy. Not surprisingly, given our mandate and program delivery expertise, we were identified, along with our colleague regional development agencies in their respective regions, as the delivery agent in Atlantic Canada for the new national $500 million program known as Recreational Infrastructure Canada, or RInC.
I mention this because the RInC program figures prominently in ACOA's most recent supplementary estimates (B), in which the agency seeks authority to draw down $5.9 million from the total of $33.9 million in funding identified for the delivery of this program in Atlantic Canada.
Other measures outlined in ACOA's most recent supplementary estimates include incremental funding of $10,407 to hire more students through the federal student work experience program and an allowance of $2,000 for an automobile for the Minister of State for ACOA.
We were aware of how critical it was to get the RInC Program up and running very quickly, to commit the funds and ensure they were expended by the deadline date. Thanks to ACOA's network of over 30 offices located throughout the Atlantic region, our well-established relationship with provincial and municipal governments, and our existing and flexible program mechanisms, ACOA was able to quickly put in place the most appropriate delivery process for this new initiative.
After our usual due diligence on project applications received, ACOA was able to quickly allocate funding to interested communities based on the quality and construction-readiness of their proposals. RInC applications started coming in to the agency in early May, following the launch of the program.
Since the launch of RInC in May, funding has been announced for a total of 125 projects, representing a total federal investment of more than $18.5 million at this time.
ACOA has long-established relationships with municipalities, community organizations, first nations communities, and not-for-profit entities. In the case of RInC, our federal funding has leveraged an additional $43 million for various RInC projects that in total are valued at over $61.5 million.
It is also interesting to note that, currently, 99 of the 125 RInC projects that had been announced are underway, and 17 projects have in fact been completed. Thus far, ACOA has received close to 250 project applications under RInC. This demonstrates that there was a pent-up demand for such an initiative aimed at repairing and upgrading recreational facilities, many of which were built over 40 years ago and were starting to show their age.
Obviously, with this level of construction activity, employment has certainly been created for Atlantic Canadians throughout the region during the 2009 construction season. We expect to see similar levels of activity during the upcoming 2010 season.
Furthermore, these RInC projects have generated millions of dollars of economic activity as communities and community groups have purchased construction materials and services for these projects. ACOA remains quite confident that all $33.9 million in federal funding identified for the RInC program in Atlantic Canada will be committed by March 31, 2010 and that projects will indeed be completed by the March 31, 2011 deadline.
I would like, if you will allow me, to give you a sense of the kinds of projects that have been completed or are under way.
Under the RInC program in Charlottetown, P.E.I., for example, the Charlottetown Civic Centre is undergoing improvements, thanks to a $60,720 contribution from RInC. This $184,000 project includes construction of a new event planning and staging area, the addition of a new entrance to the trade centre, and the installation of energy efficient lighting. This project has created roughly 15 short-term jobs.
In Halifax, Nova Scotia, the city's Centennial Pool is being upgraded to ensure that it can continue to be a focal point for local residents while integrating required improvements so that it can be used to host provincial swimming events and help train high-performance athletes. RInC funding of $1 million is being provided for this $3-million upgrade. This project is creating roughly 161 short-term jobs.
The Village of Petit-Rocher, in New Brunswick, received $250,000 towards an $860,000 upgrade of its local soccer field just in time for this summer's Jeux de l'Acadie. This project created 35 part-time jobs.
The City of Mount Pearl, in Newfoundland and Labrador, received $600,000 in RInC funding for a $1.8 million upgrade to its main soccer facility, a project that created 33 short-term jobs.
In close cooperation with the provincial governments and communities, ACOA has moved quickly to bring the RInC program on stream in order to have projects assessed and under way for the 2009 and 2010 construction season. We are confident that RInC investments are helping to put people to work on projects right now in many communities throughout Atlantic Canada.
I will be pleased to answer questions you may have about ACOA's supplementary estimates, including RInC.
Thank you very much for your attention.