Province Helps Revitalize Blue Mountains Commercial Areas

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Rural Economic Development (RED) Program

Author:	OMAFRA Staff
Creation Date:	30 May 2008
Last Reviewed:	30 May 2008

For Immediate Release

May 26, 2008

Province Helps Revitalize Blue Mountains Commercial Areas
McGuinty Government Boosts Local Economy

Ontario is helping the Town of The Blue Mountains and the Blue Mountains Chamber of Commerce to revitalize three downtown commercial areas.

The province is investing $66,000 in the Town of The Blue Mountains Sustainable Community Improvement Plan project. The project will help the town’s commercial areas become even more vibrant, offer more affordable housing opportunities, preserve and restore historic buildings through green technology and begin restoring unused vacant sites.

The funding is part of the Rural Economic Development Program which invests in community-based projects in three priority areas:

Improved access to health care services
Revitalized communities and downtowns
Enhanced skills training

Quotes

“I am pleased to support this project to help the Town of The Blue Mountains identify its opportunities for economic revitalization and development," said Leona Dombrowsky. Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. “Today’s funding will help encourage growth for this community.”

“The Sustainable Community Improvement Plan will be different and more innovative than other Community Improvement Plans because instead of attempting to generate downtown commercial area revitalization, the Community Improvement Plan will focus on creating sustainable forms of redevelopment and adaptive building reuse,” said Ellen Anderson, Mayor of The Town of The Blue Mountains. “It will also combine economic development tools with planning and urban design policies and programs that promote downtown revitalization that is energy efficient, pedestrian friendly, environmentally sustainable and respective of heritage and cultural features. This fits with our strategic plan to build a strong, vibrant and sustainable community.”

Quick Facts

Since 2003, Ontario has invested $50 million in 158 projects through the Rural Economic Development Program.
The Town of The Blue Mountains has a population of about 6,800 permanent residents,
which increases to about 16,000 in the winter.

Learn More

Find out more about The Town of The Blue Mountains.