By William Crooks
Local Journalism Initiative
The Quebec government has granted $13.2 million to the City of Sherbrooke to support major upgrades to its aging water infrastructure. The announcement was made Monday, May 5 by Geneviève Hébert, MNA for Saint-François, on behalf of Municipal Affairs Minister Andrée Laforest. The funds are part of the 2023 Municipal Water Infrastructure Program (PRIMEAU), which provides support for large-scale waterworks renewal projects across Quebec.
Flanked by Sherbrooke Mayor Évelyne Beaudin and municipal officials, Hébert delivered the news at a press conference before taking questions from local media.
“This financial assistance will allow for the renewal of more than 3,200 metres of drinking water, stormwater, and wastewater conduits,” Hébert said. The work will take place on several streets, including Curé-LaRocque, Haig, Moore, Rioux, Lincoln, Fairmount, du Fédéral, Cambrai, des Ormes, and Dufferin.
Hébert noted that the Province will cover 75 per cent of the total project cost, which is estimated at just over $17 million. She praised the City’s long-term planning and commitment to improving underground infrastructure. “These are essential and crucial projects that are not always visible, but ones our government is proud to support.”
Mayor Beaudin emphasized that the projects are part of a broader, multi-year strategy to modernize Sherbrooke’s water systems. “Already, two requests under the PRIMEAU program have been submitted. The first was approved in July 2023 for $8.8 million. Today’s announcement represents the second, bringing the total so far to nearly $22 million,” she said.
Beaudin explained that Sherbrooke is entitled to over $41 million under the PRIMEAU envelope over a ten-year period. “These amounts allow us to take real steps toward reducing our maintenance deficit and upgrading our infrastructure to today’s standards.”
While welcoming the funding, Beaudin made it clear that the program does not cover all the city’s water-related needs. “If we want to respond to all of them, we’ll need to think outside of current programs,” she said. “Every program comes with conditions, and combining those conditions is a challenge at the local level. That’s why we continue to advocate for unconditional transfers to municipalities.”
