Business View Civil and Municipal | Volume 2, Issue 12

97 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL VOLUME 2, ISSUE 11 ART I CLE T I TLE apply for through federal or provincial funds. We are pushing to ensure that each one of our new developments have broadband or fiber within the communities.” Schmidt shares that a resident recently came before council, seeking support to establish his own broadband infrastructure, something his neighborhood was on board with. “People have moved up here with the expectation that they would have broadband,” says Schmidt. “In some cases, maybe that expectation hasn’t been quite met.” SWIFT (Southwestern Integrated Fibre Technology), a key municipally- led broadband expansion project in Ontario, has announced plans to begin projects in the communities of Anten Mills, Hillsdale, Phelpston, and Snow Valley. In addition, the Township has recently been advised of a Federal/Provincial announcement whereby Springwater and a number of other smaller communities in Ontario could see an investment of up to $140M which would benefit over 43,000 households and businesses. In 2003, the Midhurst Secondary Plan was initiated to guide development in Midhurst. After years of planning approvals, phase 1A of the Midhurst Valley plan finally broke ground in 2020. This first phase of development, called the Micks Subdivision, will include 342 detached and semi-detached housing units. Allen reports, “The tree clearing, and groundworks occurred in the latter half of 2020. And the internal infrastructure works for the subdivision are continuing into 2021. Work has commenced on the water and wastewater treatment plants which is ongoing.” Overall, the Midhurst Secondary Plan provides room for the development of 10,000 residential units, or approximately 30,000 people within the next 20 years. Although the model homes are just starting to be built, Allen shares the popularity of the project, “The sales center for Midhurst