Lefaivre Marina to receive $100,000 in upgrades as part of federal funding for 11 projects in Glengarry-Prescott-Russell

The Lefaivre Marina will receive an upgrade to its rock wall and renovations to a second section as part of an announcement of local funding projects in Glengarry-Prescott-Russell.

Francis Drouin, Member of Parliament for Glengarry-Prescott-Russell, announced joint funding for 11 projects in Glengarry-Prescott-Russell to improve community and municipal infrastructure. This includes construction of a 106-metre rock wall and the renovation of another 110 metres of the rock wall at the Lefaivre marina site in Alfred and Plantagenet. Drouin made the announcement while visiting the Lefaivre Marina with officials from Alfred and Plantagenet Township on July 15.

The upgrades will also include erosion control at the Lefaivre Marina facility. The armour stone will be repaired and modified around the east point and the stone wall will continue along the shoreline, with two rows of 12-inch stone set back by six inches on the second row. The area behind the armour stone will be modified with rip-rap stone. A total of $80,000 of the $100,000 cost is being paid by the federal government, with the balance being provided by the Government of Ontario.

Alfred and Plantagenet Mayor Stéphane Sarrazin told the assembled media that he has fond memories of the Lefaivre Marina, having participated many times in water and boating activities near the location.

“This grant formalizes the start of a long sequence of investments in the Lefaivre waterfront park, which we hope will be an important gathering site in the post-COVID era,” Sarrazin said. “It will fill a pressing need for infrastructure capable of countering erosion and ensuring the long life of the site, following the two floods of 2017 and 2019.”

The mayor noted Alfred and Plantagenet council is looking to develop the seven-acre site around the marina as a spot for families to enjoy outdoor activities. The municipality is currently in the midst of a feasibility study on how to best equip the park and will consult with township residents for their views.

Long term plans to develop marina site

Sarrazin said that long term, Alfred and Plantagenet would like to work with a private business in partnership to run the marina and possibly a restaurant – similar to the arrangement Champlain Township recently set up with Riverest Inc. to operate its marina. The mayor noted that the final decision on the Lefaivre Marina will be up to the citizens of Alfred and Plantagenet.

“We will be doing public consultations to see what people want,” Sarrazin said in an interview after the press conference, gesturing towards the vast amounts of land surrounding the site located on a beautiful spot on the Ottawa River. “It’s seven acres, right on the river – you just don’t see that.”

“We want to make sure we build what people want and not what politicians want.”

Other projects also receive funding

The Lefaivre Marina project is one of 11 projects in Glengarry-Prescott-Russell, for which Drouin announced federal funding on July 15. Other projects receiving funding include upgrades to the Centre d’Action community centre in East Hawkesbury, the Robert Hartley Sports Complex in Hawkesbury, the purchase of a community pandemic response unit for Alfred and Plantagenet, upgrades to the Glengarry Memorial Hospital in Alexandria and repairs to the Champlain Library in Vankleek Hill.

A total of $948,925 toward the projects is being provided through the COVID-19 Resilience Infrastructure Stream of the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program. The Government of Ontario is contributing $237,231 to these projects. The COVID-19 stream, implemented in response to the pandemic, allows Government of Canada to invest up to 80 per cent in projects that support provinces and up to 100 per cent in projects that support territories and Indigenous communities in their response to the pandemic.

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