City of Winnipeg prioritizes major infrastructure projects

WINNIPEG, MB. – The City of Winnipeg will soon hear an administrative report to recommend and prioritize major infrastructure projects with federal and provincial governments.

The report is recommending upgrades to the headworks facilities and the biosolids facilities of the North End Water Pollution Control Centre, the Phase One – Recreation Centre portion of the South Winnipeg Recreation Campus and the St. James Civic Centre’s facility expansion project. The combined cost of the four capital projects is estimated to be $994 million.

“Building Winnipeg and moving our city and province forward on addressing its infrastructure deficit requires partnerships with provincial and federal governments. What’s coming forward for review by Executive Policy Committee and ultimately Council is a prioritization of major infrastructure projects that require strong federal and provincial funding partners in order to get them built,” Winnipeg mayor Brian Bowman said.

The two highest priority projects, Bowman said, involve wastewater treatment.

“As a city, we remain committed to doing our part to protect and improve the water quality of our rivers and lakes. However, Winnipeg residents and property taxpayers simply cannot be expected to incur costs of this magnitude on their own,” he said.

If approved under the federal Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program, the projects would be eligible for federal and provincial funding of up to $643.4 million.

The City of Winnipeg’s infrastructure deficit is estimated at $6.9 billion, within which 22 major capital projects require $4.45 billion in funding.

“Winnipeg’s population is growing, and so too are our infrastructure needs,” Bowman said.

In late August the City of Winnipeg submitted its final Combined Sewer Overflow Master Plan to the Province of Manitoba, which outlines the city’s efforts to reduce the impact of combined sewer overflows on rivers and lakes. The master plan will be implemented over several decades at an estimated capital cost of $2.3 billion.