Express_2020_06_10

FORD CONFIRMS SUPPORT FOR CELL IMPROVEMENT B U S I N E S S

EN BREF • BRIEFS CHAMPLAIN TOWNSHIP FINANCES Champlain Township is in good financial shape according to the municipality’s annual audit. The auditor’s report noted the township finished 2019 with a surplus of $819,000, compared to the previous year which saw a budget surplus of $176,600. Adding the 2019 into its reserve funds for emergency needs gives the munici- pality an accumulated surplus total of $34,420,103, compared to the previous year’s accumulated surplus of $33,600,490.The township has a net debt of $6,667,112 at the end of 2019, compared to a net debt of $7,388,583 at the end of 2018. – Gregg Chamberlain FARMERS MARKET RELOCATES The Vankleek Hill Farmers Market has a new site for the summer. The VKH Farmers Market board has an agreement with Champlain Township for use of the parking lot area of the former municipal daycare site on Derby Street for a limited farmers market operation until the autumn season when the Upper Canada District School Board (UCDSB) may allow community use again of its Vankleek Hill Collegiate Institute building and grounds. The UCDSB suspended its community use agreements after closing down all of its schools during the COVID-19 pandemic. – Gregg Chamberlain

GREGG CHAMBERLAIN gregg.chamberlain@eap.on.ca

Premier Doug Ford reconfirmed support for broadband and cellular service im- provement projects for Eastern Ontario and other regions. “As we carefully restart the economic engine of Canada, every region and every community will place a role in bringing jobs and prosperity back to our province,” stated Premier Ford during a June 3 announcement on the Improving Connectivity in Ontario (ICON) program. “By investing in reliable broadband and cellular service, we are helping to create greater opportunity for our families, farmers, and small business owners in rural and remote areas of this great province.” The ICON program involves partnerships between the provincial and federal govern- ments and others to support broadband service improvement for rural and remote regions. It includes $70 million in provincial funds already committed to the Eastern Ontario Regional Network (EORN) for a cel- lular service improvement project for Eastern Ontario. Russell Township Mayor Pierre Leroux, who is the current warden for the United Counties of Prescott-Russell (UCPR), sits on the EORN board as the UCPR representative. He welcomed the premier’s reaffirmation of provincial support for rural broadband improvement projects. “This was announcing funds that were al- ready allocated,” Warden Leroux said during

Premier Doug Ford reconfirmed provincial support for regional broadband and cellular service improvement projects, including those which target Ontario’s rural and remote areas. The June 3 announcement is good news for the Eastern Ontario Regional Network, which has a $70 million commitment from the province for its Cellular Gap Improvement project. —stock photo

boosting the download rate for broadband/ cellular access to 50 megabytes per second, and the upload rate to 10 megabytes per second. “But we’ve decided that we’re going to go for a bigger project,” Leroux said, “at a gigabyte per second download. We’re better off going for the ‘big picture.’ This is going to be a generational project with significant use for years to come.” The EORN board expects to have all bids in for review by the end of August. The goal is to have work on the CGI project start early in 2021.

a June 4 phone interview. “Now, during these crazy times, we see the need for improved (cellular) infrastructure.” The EORN board has approved a tender call now for communications companies to bid on the Cellular Gap Improvement (CGI) project for Eastern Ontario. The goal is to eliminate all of the “dead spots” in mobile phone service in rural areas of the region and also to improve overall cellphone service and broadband access. Leroux noted that the original goal for the EORN broadband improvement project was 50mps/10mps for users. That means

Prescott et/and Russell Solidaire plus que jamais / More united than ever ! Du fond du coeur, MERCI à VOUS ! / From the bottom of our hearts, THANK YOU !

· Personnel du milieu de la santé et des services sociaux , pour votre courage, votre évouement et votre bienveillance dans vos fonctions essentielles · Organismes communautaires , pour votre engagement sans précédent dans la poursuite de vos missions · Personnel de la fonction publique, travailleurs des commerces, des restaurants, des industries et autres services essentiels , pour assurer notre bien-être · Bénévoles et accompagnateurs , pour votre générosité envers les plus vulnérables, notamment par des appels de bienveillance · Associations et clubs sociaux , pour vos élans d’entraide tels que des levées de fonds et des livraisons à domicile · Producteurs agricoles , pour votre rôle essentiel dans la chaîne d’alimentation · Entrepreneurs, producteurs et artisans , pour votre ingé- niosité sans pareil et votre capacité d’adaptation admirable · Médias locaux , pour une information appréciée et pertinente et la mise en valeur des bons coups de notre communauté · Artistes et organismes culturels , pour avoir su trouver d’autres moyens pour émerveiller les gens · Citoyennes et citoyens , pour votre compréhension et votre grand respect des consignes de la santé publique

· Health and social services workers , for bringing great courage, dedication and compassion to your essential functions · Community organizations , for your unprecedented commitment in the pursuit of your missions · Government staff, workers in our shops, restaurants, industries and other essential services , for looking after our well-being · Volunteers and caregivers , for your generosity towards the most vulnerable, especially through check-in phone calls · Social clubs and associations , for your supportive initiatives, such as fundraisers and home deliveries · Entrepreneurs, producers and artisans , for your unparalleled ingenuity and admirable adaptability · Farmers , for your essential role in the food chain · Local media , for providing much-appreciated relevant information and promoting the good deeds within our community · Artists and cultural organizations , for finding new ways to reach out and touch people · Citizens , for your understanding and great respect of public health guidelines

Poursuivons nos efforts et respectons les consignes de la santé publique. Ensemble, nous passerons à travers la crise de la COVID-19. Let’s continue our efforts and keep following the public health guidelines. Together, we will get through the COVID-19 crisis.

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