Business View Magazine | March 2018

114 SARNIA, ONTARIO there’s an issue to solve.We’ve seen a lot of that happening here in the last couple of years and are excited bythe prospect of seeing these places and spaces rejuvenated into productive communities that provide peoplewith adequate and needed housing,but also provide good opportunities for investment.” Sarnia has also invested in other infrastructure and energy savings projects.Currently there is a $49-million upgrade project on the city’s aging sewer collection and treatment systemwhich is a project funded by federal,provincial,andmunicipal money. Also,the City recently replaced all of its mercuryvapor andHigh Pressure Sodiumcobra head lights with energyefficient LEDs.“Historically, investment in infrastructure has been in the roads and pipes domain,”saysMisek-Evans.“But,lately, Council has turned their focus to also include parks and recreation facilities.So,we’vebeen successful in getting grants for that.We got a Canada 150 grant to help restore a 16 km.trail that goes from one end of the communityto the other,and to widen it to a consistent 8-foot width and refurbish it with a hard-packgranular so that it’s accessible to all ages.Accessibility is somethingwe’re known for,so anything that we do,that is baked into the mix.Long before it was a requirement,Sarniawas a leader in that.Andwith the recent purchase of eight newconventional buses and four newCare- A-Van specialized buses,the entire fleet of our transit system is nowlowfloor accessible.” There is also the city’s flagship Centennial Park,a 33-acrewaterfront site where contaminants were found a fewyears back.The Cityundertookan extensive brownfield remediation project over the past 5 years totaling $13-million investment that included $10.7million for park remediation and another $2.6million for replacing thewater and sewer services.Private businesses and community groups helped by sponsoring a newcommunity