Province funds $13M worth of construction at Fort William park
The Government of Ontario has committed $13 million to capital repairs at Fort William Historical Park.
The announcement was made in Thunder Bay on August 21 by Lisa MacLeod, Minister of Heritage, Sport, Tourism and Culture Industries and Sergio Buonocore, general manager of Fort William Historical Park.
The park is devoted to re-creating the days of the North West Company and the Canadian fur trade. It is one of Northern Ontario's leading tourist attractions.
"Fort William Historical Park is an economic catalyst for the region, which is why our government is continuing to invest in Northern Ontario," said MacLeod. “We want to make sure everyone has the opportunity to safely explore one of Ontario's award-winning heritage attractions this season and for years to come."
Most of the funding will be used to build a second access road to the fort. Construction of that road began in June and is expected to continue through next fall. The road, says Buonocore, is important give the number and size of events that were being hosted at the fort prior to the COVID-19 outbreak.
“We’ve had numerous large concerts over the years, big fire work shows, we’ve had a lot of traffic congestion, so we are delighted and very pleased to have this money available to create that road,” Buonocore told Tbnewswatch.com. “It’s a health and safety road we need so we have two access roads into the property.”
The remainder of the money will be used to fund such projects as site rehabilitation to repair and maintain heritage structures throughout the fort, and remediation and repairs needed due to recent flooding.
"Fort William Historical Park welcomes the ongoing support of the province," said Buonocore. "The work being completed is essential to keeping this attraction in excellent condition, and ensuring that we continue to be the cultural and tourism focal point for Northern Ontario."