The Goderich Signal-Star, 2009-03-18, Page 3-fir along the Goderich shore this
:took advantage of warm weather to
Massive funding forecasted for region
Gerard CreceB
signal -star staff
Business and community leaders
from .southern Ontario are putting
their heads together in light of a
massive funding announcement
from the federal government.
The Southwest Economic Alli-
ance (SWEA) - a group created to
promote economic growth in the
region - is looking to the feds for
details about how $1 billion dollars
in funding will be spent.
The Southern Ontario Develop-
ment Agency (SODA) - a federal
government economic develop-
ment organization - announced
at the end of January it would be
pumping $1 billion dollars into
Southern Ontario over the next five
years.
The area encompasses not only
rural areas such as Huron and
Perth counties but larger centres
like London, Kitchener and Wa-
terloo as well. With so many cen-
ters together, Goderich Mayor Deb
Shewflet said it's important to have
a local voice on the alliance.
"There's always a concern you'll
be left out," he said. "That's why
it helps to have someone at the
table."
Shewfelt said SWEA will lobby
the federal government for a num-
ber of projects in a region hard-hit
by manufacturing and economic
downturns.
"The bottom line is it's about
time Southwestern Ontario had
some kind of program," Shewfelt
said.
What's missing are the details
- something the mayor said the
group wants to help direct.
"It would be SWEA's hope to
influence and give input into what
(SODA) does," Shewfelt said.
With ,so much trade going
through the Canada -United States
borders at Sarnia and Windsor,
Shewfelt said Goderich is in prime
shape to take advantage of chang-
ing attitudes towards short -sea
shipping.
With harbour expansion already
in the political works for Goderich,
the town is poised to take better ad-
vantage of modular shipping both
by rail and by boat.
"The best way to get things out
is by freighter," he said. "It's no
big problem to come in through the
St. Lawrence by ship and it takes a
lot of trucks off the roads."
Any money spent in South-
western Ontario can mean posi-
tive things for Goderich if man-
ufacturers and retailers begin
shipping more by sea.
Shewfelt said Goderich could
stand to benefit from other com-
munities whose industrys are
getting a boost from the feds.
If London gets the funds to build
a new industrial park, he said for
example, Goderich could serve as
a main port for. importing and ex-
porting. All it will take, he said, is
getting the message across.
"We're not scared of going after
this," he said. "There's a lot of ac-
tion and now we need to influence
how this will work."
He said the alliance has benefits
not only for Goderich, but all of
Huron County, especially as the
economy goes through a reset-
ting.
Nearly 200,000 manufacturing
jobs have been cut in Southern
Ontario since 2005.
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