The MRC Pontiac has announced a call for projects to receive funding from the $2.5 million made available through the Regions and Rurality Fund Component 4 – Support for Vitalization.

Under this program, funding will be available to any organization that put forward projects which support the three axes of vitalization outlined by the agreement made between the province and MRC, which include:

Retention of the population and attraction of new residents.

A cohesive renaissance of the territory.

Transportation development.

Non-profit organizations, cooperatives, band councils of aboriginal communities, municipalities and private businesses are eligible to apply for funding.

On announcing the call for projects, Warden Jane Toller said: ‘’I am delighted with the . . .

plans of our vitalization committee using the generous transfer of funds from the provincial government in order to revitalize the Pontiac with exciting projects. We will ensure that every dollar is spent wisely.”

THE EQUITY spoke with Ken Bérubé, who serves as the vitalization agent for the program.

Bérubé, a native of Fort-Coulonge, returned to Pontiac after working in the forest fire industry in Maniwaki.

“I figured that I wanted to contribute a little bit,” said Bérubé about his decision to take the job.

Bérubé explained that the project’s purpose is to help economically challenged MRCs across the province. Of the 104 MRCs of Quebec, the MRC Pontiac ranks 96 in terms of economic development according to socioeconomic indicators used by the government of Quebec. Bérubé hopes to raise the Pontiac in that ranking.

As a part of his role, Bérubé sits on the vitalization committee, which is also staffed by representatives from the most economically disadvantaged municipalities in the MRC. Its aim is to gather different perspectives from industries like tourism, culture, agriculture and forestry. It also hopes to gather input from different socio communities and environmental groups.

“There’s not a lot of financing available out there. So, with this program there’s $2.5 million available for us to be able to get some projects forward,” said Bérubé.

In describing what kind of projects that this money could go to funding, Bérubé said it could range from splash pads, skateboard parks, anything that funds culture and sports development, the restoration of buildings, the establishment of an industrial park and projects to fund intermunicipal transportation, among other things.

One example Bérubé described was the possibility of establishing a service that would allow people to rent cars or bikes to facilitate their travel across the region.

The possibilities for projects are wide open as long as the project conforms to the 3 axes of the vitalization plan.

“Municipalities and non-profit organizations have so many projects that they couldn’t bring to life because of the financing,” said Bérubé. “So, I believe that all of the municipalities will be involved. And the same goes for non-profit organizations. There’s a lot of good ideas and I think we have a nice opportunity here in the Pontiac. The biggest challenge will be getting the information out there.”

Bérubé stated the priority of the vitalization program is to mobilize the entire population of the community.

“I think everyone will have their fair share,” said Bérubé. “We have 18 municipalities, so we’ll probably be helping a lot of municipalities, if not all of them.”

Bérubé said he expects one of the major obstacles to getting projects up and running are all the supply chain issues and increase in construction costs that are still plaguing the economy.

“It’s not only a question of material, but there’s also a big lack of human resources. Companies are taking contracts and there’s a lot of delays there,” he said.

Bérubé expects that even with the delays the Pontiac might start seeing the results of the projects this money will be going to as early as this spring, though again cautioned that some might take a lot longer.

In terms of overseeing how the money will be spent by organizations and businesses, Bérubé committed that there is a system in place to ensure accountability.

“It’s something that the vitalization committee will be going through. We will make sure that all the pennies are spent judicially,” explained Bérubé.

Applications for this stage of funding under Regions and Rurality Fund opened on August 18 and will close on September 30. For details visit the MRC Pontiac’s website or contact Ken Bérubé at k.berube@mrcpontiac.com.

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