Ottawa trip will surely net cash for York Region: chair Wayne Emmerson

yorkregion.com
March 3, 2016
By Lisa Queen

After meeting with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Environment Minister Catherine McKenna and other federal politicians on a trip to Ottawa last week, York Region leaders are looking for a financial payoff coming out of this month’s federal budget.

“We were very well received. Their budget is out March 22 and when we left, we felt quite comfortable there will be stuff in that budget that’s going to pertain to York Region,” regional chair Wayne Emmerson said.

“I’m very excited that we’re going to get some funding in all of it. Just how much, I won’t know that till March 22.”

Emmerson, East Gwillimbury Mayor Virginia Hackson, Georgina Mayor Margaret Quirk, Newmarket Mayor Tony Van Bynen, Aurora Mayor Geoff Dawe, Whitchurch-Stouffville Mayor Justin Altmann, Markham Mayor Frank Scarpitti, Markham councillors Jack Heath, Nirmala Armstrong, Jim Jones and Joe Li, Richmond Hill Councillor Brenda Hogg, regional CAO Bruce Macgregor, director of government relations and executive assistant to the chair Lina Bigioni and Greg Stasyna, program manager of training, exercise and public education went on the trip.

The cost for the bus and hotel rooms came in at about $3,500.

Aurora-Oak Ridges-Richmond Hill MP Leona Alleslev did not say whether this month’s federal budget will deliver on the region’s requests, but called the visit worthwhile.

“I think it was important that representatives from York Region came to visit Ottawa. We had a very productive meeting with the prime minister, who was engaged in the priorities of our region,” she said, adding key issues of concern, specifically the extension of the Yonge subway, were discussed.

“It was wonderful to see a unified voice for the entire region, which was communicated effectively through all levels of government. Finally, we are all working together to achieve tangible benefits to our wonderful community of York Region.”

In addition to meeting with Trudeau and McKenna, the group also met with Toronto MP and Parliamentary secretary to the prime minister for intergovernmental affairs Adam Vaughan, Quebec MP and Parliamentary secretary to the minister of innovation, science and economic development Greg Fergus, chief of staff to the minister of infrastructure John Brodhead, York Region MPs and Canadian Federation of Municipalities CEO Brock Carlton.

They lobbied for:

• Transportation funding, including extending the Yonge subway north from Finch Avenue to Richmond Hill and completing the final four Viva bus rapidway segments along Yonge from Richmond Hill to Newmarket, east from Unionville station to Cornell, along Hwy. 7 west from Islington Avenue to Hwy. 50 and at Yonge and Green Lane;

• Investments in affordable housing;

• Funding for the Upper York Sewage System, needed to accommodate growth in East Gwillimbury, Newmarket and Aurora to 2031;

• Supporting public sector broadband initiatives in areas of the region lacking connectivity.

McKenna appeared supportive of the Yonge subway extension and UYSS, Emmerson said.

Meanwhile, GTA mayors and chairs are meeting with Premier Kathleen Wynne next Monday to discuss issues such as transportation and affordable housing funding, he added.

The Ottawa trip was an opportunity for York politicians to take their issues to the decision-makers on Parliament Hill, Hackson said.

“For East Gwillimbury, the important thing was Upper York and talking about the importance of making sure it is going to be cutting edge science and it’s more than a sewage treatment plant,” she said.

“I was able to get (that) across to the minister of environment and climate change and talk about how much the federal government has already put into Lake Simcoe, upwards of $50 million for cleanup, and how important that is. And the water treatment plant will also be dealing with cleaning up the lake as well as making sure we have continuous good sewage treatment.”

Providing affordable housing as the town grows from today’s population of 25,000 to 86,000 by 2031 is also a priority, Hackson said.

“I didn’t feel it was lip service. I felt the trip was a true opportunity to inform them about things that are happening in York Region,” she added.

At Newmarket council Monday night, Newmarket Mayor Tony Van Bynen called the Ottawa trip a success.

“We were well received because our priorities align with the priorities for the federal government,” he said.

“It was a good investment of time and I anticipate we’ll be hearing a lot more when the federal budget comes forward.”

Having a half-hour meeting with the prime minister, in addition to other politicians, in advance of the federal budget was a great opportunity, Hogg said.

“I thought that our delegation was well-received by the Ministry of Infrastructure chief of staff, John Brodhead. He was impressed with our ‘shovel ready’ but also our ‘shovel worthy’ infrastructure plans,” she said.

“We told him that our Yonge subway plans will be shovel-ready by 2019. He was interested in the province making a financial announcement about the Yonge subway line to Hwy 7 and the province has now done that.”

Hogg also pitched the Yonge subway extension to McKenna.

“The federal government is looking for municipal projects which are ready to go (and) will fit with the government’s priorities (of being) fast, flexible, and fair,” she said.

Other York politicians also said the trip was worthwhile.

Armstrong called it productive for opening the lines of communication and building relationships between the two levels of government.

Heath agreed.

“The trip was extraordinarily useful in advancing York’s infrastructure concerns. The federal government will be announcing in its late March budget new programs for infrastructure grants,” he said.

“We talked to the prime minister, cabinet ministers and MPs about our priorities, the most important of which were the Yonge subway extension from Finch to Hwy. 7 in Richmond Hill, affordable housing, especially expanding our base, and water treatment.”

The trip’s biggest success was strengthening old relationships and building new ones, Dawe said.

“We also managed, through our meeting with Minister McKenna, to advance the possibility of additional funding through the Lake Simcoe Cleanup Fund,” he said.