Brockville to apply for provincial funding for Memorial Centre roof, MURF

The City of Brockville could see some money come in to help with big local projects like the MURF and the Memorial Centre roof replacement.

At the meeting of the Brockville General Committee on Tuesday, Sept. 1, the Committee unanimously agreed to apply for provincial funding from the Community Sports and Recreation Infrastructure Fund (CSRIF) program. 

The CSRIF program was launched by the Ontario government, offering $200 million for rebuilding and constructing sports and recreation facilities. There are two funding streams available, both of which follow a 50:50 sharing program model. 

• Stream 1: Repair and Rehabilitation. This stream offers grants ranging from $150,000 to $1 million, for extending the lifespan of existing facilities. 
• Stream 2: New Builds. This stream grants up to $10 million, for constructing new facilities or replacing old ones. 

For Stream 1, staff recommended applying for funding to replace the Memorial Centre’s roof, with an estimated cost of $1.66 million. 

For Stream 2, staff recommended applying to fund the ‘new-build’ portion of the MURF project, estimated at $22 million.

When asked if they should have any concerns about reaching the final timeline of March 2027,  Director of Operations Phil Woods stated, “I think the expectations of the funding align very much with our expectations for the build timeline. We wouldn’t want it to take any longer. If it took longer, we run into a number of logistical issues anyway. So provided we’re successful, and provided things fall into place as they are, I think we’re where we need to be.”

With the deadline looming on Oct. 29 for Stream 1, the committee agreed to pursue this application to secure funding in the near future. If successful, Brockville would need to provide matching funds through taxes, fundraising, or debenture.