Hay River is set to receive more than $12 million in federal and territorial funding for the development of a long-term care home and new solid waste facility.
During a Tuesday council meeting, Hay River senior administrative officer Glenn Smith told councillors the town has finalized a contribution agreement of up to $6.3 million with the GNWT to support the development of land and construction of a long-term care facility in the Sundog area.
Smith said the town will use the money to construct municipal services for the first phase of the Sundog development.
Sundog is one of the areas Hay River is working on expanding to accommodate predicted growth in the medium to long term.
Smith said the town plans to complete remaining design work and tender construction work over the winter, with construction expected next year.
Advertisement.
Advertisement.
Council also approved two contribution agreements related to a new municipal solid waste facility during Tuesday’s meeting.
The first is up to $1,974,331 from the federal Investing in Canadian Infrastructure program for the facility’s design and site development. A second agreement through the Canadian Housing Infrastructure Fund will provide up to $4.05 million for the facility’s development.
Both agreements require the town to cover at least 25 percent of eligible project costs, with federal funding covering up to 75 percent, meaning the town estimates it will have to pay $658,000 and $1.35 million for the respective agreements.
Smith told Cabin Radio the town is looking at multiple potential locations for the solid waste facility, including an area near the junction of Highway 2 and Highway 5.
Advertisement.
Advertisement.
Councillor Robert Bouchard said people have raised concerns about the location of the new solid waste facility, while deputy mayor Keith Dohey suggested looking at other sites before moving ahead with the proposed location.
“I do hope that we have more conversations as we go forward on a potential site – or if that’s a site we have some conversation on, what that’s going to look like,” said Dohey.
Smith said the newly secured funding will allow the town to determine what should be included in the solid waste facility and embark on public consultation.
