Town Receives $1,464,430 in Federal Funding

HALTON HILLS, ON – Leveraging funding from other levels of government continues to be integral to upholding the quality of life for Halton Hills residents. A media conference held at the Acton Arena saw M.P. Longfield speak to federal grant funding totalling $1,464,430 that will support 5 municipal projects:

• Design, creation, and installation of visitor signs, supporting tourism ($17,500)

• Replacement of the dehumidification units at the Mold-Masters SportsPlex ($428,070) and Acton Arena and Community Centre ($375,000)

• Implementation of heat recovery technology at the Mold-Masters SportsPlex ($321,930) and the Acton Arena and Community Centre ($321,930) to reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.

“It is my pleasure to announce the Town of Halton Hills funding to support their climate change program,” said MP Longfield. “Climate change is an issue that crosses geographical boundaries and requires investment from all levels of government.”

Mayor Ann Lawlor noted that the significant investment in the climate change program supports the Town’s outstanding commitment to reducing its carbon footprint.

“The Town, along with other municipalities, has declared a climate emergency and I am very proud that we are taking real action by retrofitting facilities to achieve energy targets and carbon reduction. I thank the Government of Canada for making funds available and approving the grant applications that we developed. The federal support will go a long way to implement necessary changes to reduce our corporate greenhouse gas emissions and to reduce operating costs over the long term.”

The Town anticipates completing the projects by September this year.

About the Town of Halton Hills

The Town of Halton Hills, with a population of approximately 60,000, consists of two urban centres, Georgetown and Acton, the Halton Hills Premier Gateway employment area, three hamlets – Glen Williams, Stewarttown and Norval – and several smaller settlements. Halton Hills has long been recognized for its natural beauty, active agricultural community, high quality of life and proximity to major centres, including Brampton, Mississauga and Toronto.  The Town is ranked as one of the top small communities in Canada by a national magazine.

Visit the Town's website

Backgrounder: Government of Canada Funding

The Town of Halton Hills applied for and received funding from the Government of Canada for 5 projects. Information about these projects is provided below.

Visitor signs ($17,500 50% matching contribution – Tourism Relief Fund)

• Tourism is an important contributor to the local economy and employment in Halton Hills. The broader tourism sectors include retail, food & beverage, arts and culture, recreation and agri-tourism.
• Seven pedestrian-level tourism signs will be placed at high pedestrian traffic areas in Halton Hills including Georgetown, Acton, Glen Williams, and popular conservation areas. These signs are intended to enhance the visitor experience and spread visitor spending amongst attractions and local businesses. The signs will also drive more traffic to the visithaltonhills.ca website where our local events calendar, visitor business directory and trail maps can be found.
• The funding from the FedDev Tourism Relief Fund has been a valuable contribution to the development of high-quality tourism products which will amplify the benefits of tourism to the local economy.

Dehumidification units:  Mold-Masters SportsPlex (MMSP) ($428,070) & Acton Arena and Community Centre (AACC) ($375,000)

• These units will provide dehumidification in the Alcott and Fernbrook rinks of the MMSP and the Townsley rink of the AACC. Dehumidification controls the quality and temperature of the air in rinks to ensure optimal ability to make quality ice, efficiently operate refrigeration processes, and maintain thermal control of the air space to prevent moisture consequences for the building envelope and participants.
• The new units will operate by utilizing heat recovery from the refrigeration process supplemented with electric heat as required.

Heat recovery technology: Mold-Masters SportsPlex ($321,930) & Acton Arena and Community Centre ($321,930)

• This technology utilizes surplus waste heat recovered from the refrigeration process to supplement heat required for heating and dehumidification of arena spaces and pre-heating of domestic water. The technology reduces the amount of waste heat being produced and expelled into the atmosphere from arena operations.

Climate change impact:

• It is anticipated that the MMSP dehumidification and heat recovery systems will reduce the annual consumption of gas by 58,248m3 and will reduce the facility’s greenhouse gas emissions by 110.7 tCO2e; the equivalent of removing emissions from 34 passenger vehicles.

• At the Acton Arena and Community Centre, it is anticipated the dehumidification and heat recovery systems will reduce annual gas consumption by 48,961m3 and will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 93 tCO2e; the equivalent of removing emissions from 28 passenger vehicles.

- 30 -