The Village of Burns Lake plans to spend $1.5 million to upgrade an intersection off Highway 16 and onto the Richmond Loop.
Most of the cost will be covered by a $1 million grant the Village received from the Rural Economic Diversification and Infrastructure Program (REDIP), said CAO Sheryl Worthing.
“Without the grant, upgrading the intersection to access commercial property to ministry of transportation and infrastructure standards would have been cost prohibitive and therefore not feasible,” Worthing said. “This will allow safe access on and off of Highway 16 at Richmond Loop to new commercial lots.”
REDIP, an initiative of the Ministry of Jobs, Economic Development and Innovation earmarks up to $33 million for projects in 2023 that support economic diversification, resilience, clean growth opportunities and infrastructure development.
To qualify for the REDIP grant, the village had to own property adjacent to the highway intersection, which is why it opted to buy a portion of the 22-acre commercial lot.
The remaining $500,000 will be sourced from the Northern Capital Planning Grant, a $100-million provincial program launched in 2019.
The village will eventually subdivide its part of the commercial lot and develop it, creating “much needed” access to commercial property, Worthing said.
Currently, the village is in the permit processing phase. It hopes to complete the permitting shortly so that the intersection upgrade works can start this summer.
Worthing couldn’t specify when the construction would end because the village still has to put the upgrade contract work through an RFP process. After that is awarded, a timeline for construction will be clearer, she said.