News Release
Mayor Kelly off to Big City Mayors Meeting
(Wednesday, January 20, 2010) - Mayor Peter Kelly is on his way to Ottawa today to join mayors from Canada’s largest cities to discuss the significant role large municipalities should continue to play in Canada’s economic recovery.
One year ago, the Federation of Canadian Municipalities Big City Mayors’ Caucus met in Ottawa to urge the nation’s leaders to invest in local infrastructure to tackle the recession. Now HRM and cities across the country are seeing those cost-shared investments pay off in direct and indirect benefits to the local and regional economy.
“When the economic stimulus program draws to close, municipalities like ours will show tangible evidence of what this spirit of cooperation has been able to achieve to benefit the public and improve the quality of life in HRM,” said Mayor Kelly. “When we invest in communities, we invest in Canada.”
Through municipal infrastructure investments, the federal government has made good on thousands of jobs promised in its Economic Action Plan, while municipalities have seen long-awaited projects, such as the central library for HRM, get off the ground.
During this year’s meetings the Mayors will discuss the need for continued investment in large municipalities to address the still-present infrastructure gaps and to support environmental initiatives.
“HRM and large cities across the country have shown that municipalities, with an appropriate level of support, can be innovative leader in addressing climate change,” said Mayor Kelly. “We are using harbour water to cool municipal buildings, reducing emissions through transit improvements, and constructing buildings that set sustainability examples for others, and we’re just getting started.”
The FCM Big City Mayors’ Caucus provides a forum for the mayors of Canada’s most important cities to discuss issues of common concern and to present and a strong, united voice to on important national municipal priorities.
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Contact:
Mayor Peter Kelly
(902) 490-4010
222-9999 (cell)
