CANADA AND ONTARIO INVEST IN NEW SHERIDAN CAMPUS AND LEARNING SPACE AT UTM

Investment will create jobs, stimulate local economy

May 25, 2009

News Release

Mississauga, Ontario — Bob Dechert, M.P. for Mississauga-Erindale, Amrit Mangat, M.P.P. for Mississauga-Brampton South and the Hon. Harinder Takhar, M.P.P. for Mississauga-Erindale, today announced $31.2 million for the Sheridan Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning’s new Mississauga campus and $70 million for a new Instructional and Laboratory Complex at the University of Toronto Mississauga.

With the help of an equally funded Knowledge Infrastructure Program, Sheridan is planning a new campus in Mississauga that will accommodate an additional 1,760 new students, and 7,500 continuing education students.

Sheridan’s Mississauga campus will deliver a range of business programs to a diverse student population that includes high school and postsecondary graduates, new Canadians, and adults seeking retraining. This $31.2 million project is expected to create about 310 jobs.

The University of Toronto Mississauga will build an Instructional and Laboratory Complex with $70 million from the Knowledge Infrastructure Program. This project will help the university accommodate increasing enrolment at its Mississauga campus. It will include new auditoriums, lecture halls, classrooms, laboratory space and computer labs. This investment in UTM is expected to create 700 jobs.

This investment is part of the federal government’s two-year, $2-billion plan to repair and expand research and educational facilities at colleges and universities across Canada and Ontario’s commitment to invest $780 million in its colleges and universities to modernize facilities and boost the province’s long-term research and skills training capacity over the next two years.

QUOTES

Bob Dechert, M.P. Mississauga-Erindale – “I am pleased to participate in the funding announcement today for both the construction of the new Mississauga campus of Sheridan College and the new laboratory and classrooms at the University of Toronto, Mississauga Campus. These projects will create immediate employment in Mississauga and help to create the knowledge based economy of the future. These are important investments in the continued success of Mississauga and Canada.

Hon. Harinder Takhar, M.P.P. Mississauga-Erindale – “The $70 million investment in UTM and $31 million investment in Sheridan will significantly improve the campus so that it can accommodate increasing enrollment and continue to offer a world class learning experience right here in Mississauga”

Dr. Robert Turner, President and CEO, Sheridan College – “Thanks to the government of Canada and the government of Ontario, Sheridan is going to be able to fill a big need for students and businesses in Mississauga. The Mississauga is home to over 55 corporate offices in finance, insurance, real estate, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology and logistics.  Everyone has told Sheridan a college presence is essential to fulfilling their workforce needs.  Thanks to this new funding we are going to be able to pay big dividends to the Mississauga community.”

Professor Ian Orchard, Vice-President and Principal of the University of Toronto Mississauga – “We are delighted that the federal and provincial governments are providing support to enhance instructional and research capacity at our campus. The new Instructional Centre and revitalized laboratories will provide classrooms and instructional facilities equipped with leading edge technology and equipment. This project will play a key role in helping us educate the next generation of highly skilled individuals who are ready to meet the challenges of our knowledge-driven global economy.”

Mayor Hazel McCallion – "This is wonderful news. I would like to thank Premier Dalton McGuinty for delivering on his funding promise. Attracting another post-secondary institution to Mississauga and expanding the University of Toronto Mississauga have been a priority for us. The news today that Sheridan College will be locating a new campus in our city fits right into our Strategic Plan to revitalize our downtown core."

These joint investments are to help provide economic stimulus and promote employment by creating construction jobs as well as employment for engineers, architects, other tradespeople and technicians. They are also helping to improve teaching facilities and generate the advanced technological infrastructure needed to keep Ontario’s colleges and universities at the forefront of scientific advancement.

Demonstrating their commitment to stimulating the economy and creating jobs, both the Governments of Canada and Ontario are moving forward with a number of large-scale infrastructure programs to assist Ontarians when they need it most.

Canada’s Economic Action Plan sets out to stimulate the Canadian economy over the next two years and to improve our long-term competitiveness through $12 billion in new infrastructure investment, across Canada that includes the $2-billion Knowledge Infrastructure Program. This new support is the next substantive investment in the Government of Canada’s multi-year Science and Technology Strategy, Mobilizing Science and Technology to Canada’s Advantage.

Through the 2009 Ontario Provincial Budget – Confronting the Challenge: Building Our Economic Future – the province is investing $32.5 billion in infrastructure for Ontario over the next two years, including a $5 billion contribution from the federal government that will support more than 300,000 jobs and strengthen Ontario’s economy. These investments build on the Ontario government’s five-year, $30 billion ReNew Ontario infrastructure investment plan, which was completed in 2008-09, one year ahead of schedule.

LEARN MORE

Learn how the Government of Canada is investing in Ontario infrastructure. 

Learn how the Government of Ontario is helping to build and revitalize infrastructure across the province.

To learn more about Canada’s Economic Action Plan, visit www.actionplan.gc.ca.

Learn more about provincial solutions for Ontario.

Learn more about the City of Mississauga's Strategic Plan, visit www.mississauga.ca

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Tia Anderson, Office of Bob Dechert, M.P., (905) 897-1952

Shawn Knights, Office of Amrit Mangat, M.P.P., (416) 325-1035

Chris Day, Office of Canada’s Transport and Infrastructure Minister, 613-991-0700

Annette Phillips, Office of the Honourable John Milloy, 416-326-5748