Saskatchewan Party Will Provide Support to Community Rinks and Legions

A re-elected Saskatchewan Party government will support important community facilities by restarting the Community Rink Affordability Grant and significantly increasing funding to the Saskatchewan Veteran Service Club Support Program, which supports veteran services organizations like Royal Canadian Legions.

“The Saskatchewan Party understands how important these kinds of facilities are to communities throughout Saskatchewan and that’s why we want to help make them a little more affordable to operate,” said Premier Scott Moe.

The Community Rink Affordability Grant will provide $2,500 per ice surface per year to help communities keep their rink activities affordable for Saskatchewan families. The grant will be restarted in the current fiscal year with communities receiving payments this winter. It will support approximately 635 ice surfaces in 373 communities across Saskatchewan, at a cost to government of $1.7 million per year.

A re-elected Saskatchewan Party government will also increase funding under the Saskatchewan Veteran Service Club Support Program from $100,000 to $1.5 million per year.

This program was introduced by the Saskatchewan Party government to provide financial assistance to veteran service clubs throughout the province. In its first year, the program provided funding for facility improvements to 21 Legions, three ANAVETS locations and one Lynx Wing. There are 164 Legion Halls, four ANAVETS and one Lynx Wing in Saskatchewan.

“This program has been extremely well-received and the support these organizations provide to veterans and to their communities is more vital than ever now,” Moe said. “$100,000 a year simply wasn’t enough to provide support to all the Legions and other veterans organizations, so we are looking forward to providing this significant boost in funding starting next year.”

The Saskatchewan Veteran Service Club Support Program is administered by the Royal Canadian Legion Saskatchewan Command. A re-elected Saskatchewan Party government will work with the Legion and other program partners to deliver the enhanced program.

The initiatives announced today are part of the Saskatchewan Party’s plan to build strong communities throughout the province, Moe said.

They build on major investments that have improved quality of life across Saskatchewan.

In the Moose Jaw area, these investments include:

• The $80 million Dr. F.H. Wigmore Regional Hospital, a state-of-the-art facility opened in 2015;
• The first new school in more than 60 years – a $50 million joint use facility to be constructed in the Westheath neighbourhood;
• A $12 million renovation of Saskatchewan Polytechnic’s Moose Jaw campus;
• New funding to support the delivery of a variety of education and skills training programs at Saskatchewan Polytechnic;
• $4.8 million in funding under the Municipal Economic Enhancement Program (MEEP), most of which will be allocated to the construction of a new pumphouse at the city’s High Service Reservoir;
• A new Family Resource Centre where families with young children can access information about government supports and programs;
• A $1 million contribution to support improvements at the Moose Jaw Municipal Airport, including the expansion of the existing runway and taxiway to accommodate larger planes;
• A new swimming pool at Buffalo Pound Provincial Park;
• 220 new child care spaces in 8 programs since 2007;
• 176 new pre-kindergarten spaces in 11 programs since 2007.

“The Saskatchewan Party is focused on a strong recovery so that we can continue to invest in Moose Jaw and strong communities across the province,” Moe said.

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For further information:

Jim Billington
Communications Director
Saskatchewan Party Campaign
[email protected]
306-359-3633