SEAFORTH, ON - The Municipality of Huron East held an official ceremony today to celebrate the completion of the expansion to the Seaforth and District Community Centre.

Ben Lobb, Member of Parliament for Huron-Bruce; the Honourable Carol Mitchell, Member of Provincial Parliament for Huron-Bruce; and His Worship Mayor Bernie MacLellan of the Municipality of Huron East, are pleased to see the completion of this important community infrastructure project.

The expansion included building an addition with two new dressing rooms and an expanded lobby and spectator area. Improvements also included the addition of accessible washrooms and retrofitting upgrades such as insulation, lighting and improved refrigeration equipment. The roof was also repainted.

The governments of Canada and Ontario have each contributed up to $348,389 to the project.  Additional funding was contributed by the Municipality of Huron East for a total project cost of $1,045,167.

"Through Canada’s Economic Action Plan, we are creating jobs and providing families and future generations with recreation facilities they will enjoy for years to come,” said MP Lobb. “Community centres like this one are important as they give residents a sense of belonging and a place for people to connect and stay active.”

“The recreation centre improvements we are celebrating today supports our government’s Open Ontario plan to stimulate the economy and create new opportunities for jobs and growth,” said MPP Mitchell. “Here in Huron East, Open Ontario is supporting local trades and businesses while promoting a stronger, healthier community.”

Mayor Bernie MacLellan thanked the two senior levels of government for their financial support to this needed community facility expansion and improvement: “The new dressing rooms will provide much needed space for users and the accessible washrooms will provide access to all the residents. Insulation, lighting and improved refrigerator equipment will serve the residents of Huron East for many years to come.”

This project is one of more than 760 across the province that is moving forward thanks to a joint federal-provincial investment of more than $380 million under the Recreational Infrastructure Canada (RInC) Program in Ontario and the Ontario Recreation Program (Ontario REC). The governments of Canada and Ontario teamed up to support Ontario's communities and create jobs by improving recreational infrastructure, as these types of projects also encourage higher levels of participation in physical activity and community building. For more information on this initiative, please visit www.rinc-on.ca.