For Immediate Release
August 1, 2007

McGuinty Government Supports Owen Sound Economic Study

Updated Strategy Will Help Strengthen Local Economy

OWEN SOUND - The McGuinty government is investing in a study that will help strengthen the community of Owen Sound's economy by identifying new opportunities, Leona Dombrowsky, Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, announced today.

"Updating Owen Sound's economic development strategy will help create a more diversified and prosperous local economy," said Dombrowsky. "It will strengthen the local economy by providing a better understanding of the community's needs and how to address them."

The province will contribute $15,000 to help the Corporation of the City of Owen Sound and its partner, the Excellence in Manufacturing Consortium, better understand economic issues and their impacts in the local community.

"Thanks to the support of the provincial government, our community can now begin to update our existing economic development strategy," said Mayor Ruth Lovell, co-chair of the business development committee, City of Owen Sound. "An updated strategy will help our City become more resilient by focusing our resources on promising new economic development opportunities."

This is just one more example of how, working together, Ontarians have achieved results in rural Ontario. Other examples include:

  • Providing an additional $70 million for the Rural Infrastructure Investment Initiative. This means a total of $140 million will be available for improvements to water systems, roads, bridges and other priorities
  • Providing $472 million in 2007 to rural municipalities through the Ontario Municipal Partnership Fund
  • Providing $12.5 million to the new Pick Ontario Freshness marketing strategy, which includes a consumer awareness campaign designed to increase interest and demand for local foods across the province, expands the Foodland Ontario program to more fresh food products and boosts the Savour Ontario program in fine dining and vacation establishments.

Today's investment was made through the Rural Economic Development (RED) Program, which invests in community-based projects that support sustainable rural economies in three priority areas: improved access to health care services, revitalized communities and downtowns, and enhanced skills training.

Through the RED Program, the province has invested $33 million in 118 projects, representing a total investment of $204.6 million in rural Ontario, since 2003. The Ontario government and its partners are building strong rural communities that work better for the people who live in them.


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Contacts:
Kelly Synnott
Minister's Office
416-326-6439

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