Infrastructure key issue at FCM meetings, local councillor says

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Infrastructure was a key topic of conversation as civic representatives from across Canada descended on Prince George, B.C., last week.

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Chatham Coun. Alysson Storey was the local delegate to the Federation of Canadian Municipalities board of directors meetings.

Elected to the board last year as a director in the Ontario caucus, she said communities are feeling the cost pressures of aging roads, bridges, water and sanitation equipment.

“What came through loud and clear during our many discussions . . . was the critical situation facing municipalities when it comes to infrastructure,” she said.

“The position of FCM is the federal government needs to come to the table and work with . . . municipalities on solutions to issues facing us all, especially when it comes to housing and the infrastructure needed to support that growth, like water and wastewater.”

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FCM has committees working on a variety of issues, with Storey serving as vice-chair of the standing committee on anti-racism, equity and inclusion, and on the rural caucus, election readiness working group and standing committee on community safety and crime prevention.

“It’s so important for Chatham-Kent to have a voice at this national table, and for us to hear other voices from across the country,” she said.

“. . . We have much more in common than we realize, no matter if it’s Chatham-Kent, or Prince George, B.C., or Grand Falls-Windsor, N.L. And working together on these challenges, especially when it comes to national issues, we need a national voice working with the federal government.”

Storey noted there was a “heavy focus” on the future of the Canada Community Building Fund (CCBF) and the gas tax, and questions about potential policy changes.

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“This is an issue that affects our community directly as Chatham-Kent receives approximately $6.5 million from the CCBF that is used directly for important items like roads and bridges,” she said.

“We need the federal government to take the FCM message seriously that the CCBF is one of the best, and only, tool Canadian municipalities have to address our many infrastructure needs. This is not the time to make it more difficult to access.”

Additional discussions included affordable housing and homelessness, how municipalities can engage in more robust Truth and Reconciliation activities and policy-making, incorporating online digital assistants for routine planning and permit applications, and energy-efficiency projects.

FCM has been the national voice of municipal government since 1901. Members include more than 2,100 municipalities, from Canada’s cities and rural centres, to northern communities and 20 provincial and territorial municipal associations.

Its membership represents more than 92 per cent of all Canadians.

tterfoth@postmedia.com

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