Ontario supports all weather road study in Far North announcement in Balmertown
The Honourable Rick Bartolucci announced this afternoon that the Province would contribute over $146,000 to conduct a feasibility study to determine the viability of building an all-season road to connect the KO communities with the Ontario highway system.
Chiefs and mayors attended the announcement in Balmertown. The Northern Ontario Heritage Fund announcement supporting the all weather road into the far north was video conferenced with representatives from Deer Lake, Keewaywin, North Spirit Lake, Sioux Lookout, Thunder Bay attending. To learn more about the announcement, click here. To see photos, click here.
All-Weather Road Would Link First Nation Communities to Northern Highway System
RED LAKE, August 09, 2005 – The Ontario government is helping connect Northwestern Ontario’s remote First Nation communities by investing in an all-weather road study in the Far North, Northern Development and Mines Minister Rick Bartolucci announced today.
“The unique transportation issues faced by remote First Nation communities are amplified by the prohibitive costs of moving people and goods,” said Bartolucci. “The McGuinty government is committed to working with First Nations communities and the federal government to address such long-standing challenges that hinder the health and prosperity of the Far North.”
The Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation (NOHFC) will provide $146,297 to enable the Northern Roads First Nations Transportation Authority to undertake the first stages of planning for a proposed all-weather road system. The system would extend northwards from the end of the existing all weather road north of Red Lake to Sandy Lake First Nation, linking Deer Lake, Keewaywin, North Spirit, McDowell Lake and Poplar Hill First Nations.
These remote communities are currently only accessible by air service and by seasonal winter roads. The mandate of the transportation authority is to manage and oversee all the activities associated with the planning, design, development, construction, operations and maintenance of the proposed all weather road. The project’s initial steps include assessing economic impacts and benefits, strategic planning and defining the roles and responsibilities.
“Residents of our Far North hope for transportation infrastructure that we in the more populated regions of the province take for granted,” said Bartolucci, who is chair of the NOHFC. “I am pleased we can help take these first steps toward the day when northerners can travel and goods can be delivered in remote communities on a road system that is available on a year-long basis.”
This NOHFC project is part of the government’s Northern Prosperity Plan for building stronger northern communities. The Northern Prosperity Plan has four pillars: Strengthening the North and its Communities; Listening to and Serving Northerners Better; Competing Globally; and Providing Opportunities for All.
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Contacts:
Laura Blondeau
Minister’s Office – Sudbury
(705) 564-7454
Michel Lavoie
MNDM/NOHFC – Sudbury
(705) 564-7125