Small communities given shot in the arm

TIGNISH - Four new projects in western Prince Edward Island will share in a pot of more than $895,000.
Premier Robert Ghiz and Rural Development Minister Neil LeClair held an early morning tour of Prince County on Wednesday dropping off cash in Tignish, O'Leary and Linkletter.
Ghiz says the money comes from the Island Community Fund. He was still in opposition, he said, when he recognized the need for funding for small projects, particularly in rural areas.
"When I first came into government I realized that a lot of our smaller communities do not have the same resources that the Summerside's and Charlottetown's do, to be able to access different funds," Ghiz said.
"I wanted to make a fund that would help out our rural communities in this province, to help them with their community centres, with their rinks, with different projects that were perhaps a little bit smaller and didn't fit into the mega-million-dollar projects and that's exactly what this is doing."
Renovations will be completed at the Tignish Parish Centre, which has been a hub for cultural events, community activities and social functions. Total cost of the project is $108,795.
Constructions crews continued to install wallboards while the Premier toured the centre yesterday. Renovations are being carried out inside and out and the kitchen is being remodelled.
Ghiz then made a stop at the Tignish Health Co-op, a community-owned health centre, housing physician offices, a dental clinic and a pharmacy.
The board of directors will be completing an addition to its facilities to house a range of health-related services. Total cost is $203,585.
The work will be completed in May.
In O'Leary, the Community Centre will be upgraded through improvements to the parking lot and a new barrier-free access with a total cost of $120,000. The centre houses the local fire department, civic offices, library, day care and public meeting rooms.
In Linkletter, just west of Summerside, a new community centre will be constructed at a cost of $462,408.
"The new Rural Action Plan developed by the provincial government sets out a roadmap and 40 specific actions now underway or being finalized," said Ghiz.
"The development of rural communities is a major priority of the provincial government and I look forward to continuing to work with rural Islanders to promote jobs and growth."