The Blue Mountains wastewater funding announcement in September (left to right): Alan Pacheco, Allison Kershaw, MPP Brian Saunderson, Mayor Andrea Matrosovs, Shawn Everitt, Pruthivi Desai.
This past year saw an abundance of infrastructure announcements for Simcoe-Grey.
by Trent Gow
The year 2024 saw significant investment by the Ontario government in infrastructure across Simcoe-Grey in the critical areas of education, energy, healthcare and wastewater treatment.
“Some were small and targeted, others were substantial but all are important to our region’s economic growth and residents’ well-being,” said local MPP Brian Saunderson of the year’s many infrastructure announcements.
Early in 2024, Ontario’s massive investment of $2.5 billion in support of Honda’s comprehensive electric vehicle supply chain headquartered in New Tecumseth gained international acclaim. And new high school projects in Wasaga Beach and Alliston made solid progress over the year. Then, in the year’s final four months, significant new hospital projects and wastewater treatment initiatives took centre stage.
“It’s an amazing achievement for any Ontario constituency to have approval for one major hospital redevelopment project but I’m proud to say that Simcoe-Grey has two,” said Saunderson. On August 30, Saunderson announced that Ontario was issuing a request for qualifications to build an expanded and revitalized Stevenson Memorial Hospital in Alliston. Then on December 12, he joined Sylvia Jones, the deputy premier and minister of health, to communicate that the province has approved a large, modern facility for the Collingwood General and Marine Hospital to be constructed on a donated Poplar Sideroad site.
In September, Saunderson made two announcements of sizable investments by the Ontario government in support of local wastewater systems. A contribution of $25.4 million will enable the construction of over 2,000 new housing units in the Town of The Blue Mountains. And a $70 million investment in Collingwood’s water treatment plant removes a capacity barrier that was stalling new home construction in Collingwood and New Tecumseth.
“These investments will drive sustainable economic growth and access to good-paying jobs in Simcoe-Grey for decades to come,” said Saunderson.
