Stratford city councillor Jo-Dee Burbach feels more money is needed from the provincial government to support infrastructure and housing.
Burbach, who recently attended the Association of Municipalities of Ontario Conference in Ottawa, said one of the big priorities at the conference was finding a new municipal funding partnership with the province.
“About 60 percent of our funding comes from the provincial government, and over the years that funding has remained stable but the number of things we’re responsible for has grown,” said Burbach.
“There is a funding gap. For infrastructure, we don’t have the funds needed to get all the infrastructure we need to do in the next 10 years.”
AMO estimates that Ontario municipalities plan for $250-$290 billion in capital investments over the next decade, with $100 billion focused on growth.
Burbach said they need to figure out how to finance these amounts, and are asking the province to “re-look at some funding models that in the past covered more of these costs, and to partner with us so we can get some of that infrastructure done.”
“What infrastructure does is that it allows us to do important things like building housing, which is a huge priority for every municipality and the province,” said Burbach.
Burbach said one way to tackle the current housing crisis is to have the province help municipalities build infrastructure like sewers and water lines and put roads in place so housing can be built for those in need.
During the conference, she saw some of the ministers respond to more than one municipality about these needs, adding that it felt like they were listening.
Burbach hopes solutions come forward, and that the message driven home is to give municipalities stable and secure funding.
