Government of Canada Allocates $295,043 in Funding to the Corporation du Moulin des Pionniers de La Dore

LA DORÉ, QUEBEC--(Marketwire - March 11, 2011) - The Honourable Denis Lebel, Minister of State for Canada Economic Development, today announced the awarding of $295,043 in non-repayable funding to the Corporation du Moulin des Pionniers de La Doré. Granted through the Temporary Initiative for the Strengthening of Quebec's Forest Economies, this financial assistance will be used by the organization to renovate the facilities on the Moulin des Pionniers La Doré historical heritage site.

"Tourist attractions like the Moulin des Pionniers La Doré enrich and diversify Quebec's regional economies through the sustainable spinoffs they generate. By lending its financial support to the modernization of this site, the Government of Canada is showing proof once again of its determination to promote the development of tourism in the Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean region," explained Minister of State Lebel.

The Corporation's project involves, among other things, developing a hospitality pavilion, restoring Maison Marie and the sawmill and acquiring various interpretive materials. Necessitating an overall investment of more than $1 million, these improvements will help strengthen Moulin des Pionniers La Doré's drawing power among tourists, including the one in six visitors who typically hail from outside the province.

The rehabilitation of this site will generate considerable economic activity in the area and contribute to the revitalization of La Doré, a community that has been severely affected by the forest crisis and company closures. According to the Corporation du Moulin des Pionniers de La Doré, this project will ensure the maintenance of numerous direct jobs in the municipality.

About the TISQFE

Brought into force last June, the Temporary Initiative for the Strengthening of Quebec's Forest Economies was established to help communities affected by the forestry crisis diversify their economies in order to secure their development and create and maintain employment. The measure's aim is also to support the viability and sustainable growth of the small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in these communities.

This measure is one of many put in place by the Government of Canada in recent months to counteract the effects of the forest crisis. Others include, for example, the Community Adjustment Fund, with its $1 billion budget over two years to mitigate the impacts of the crisis, the Pulp and Paper Green Transformation Program, toward which $1 billion has been granted to help enterprises carry out environmentally-friendly projects, and the investment of $230 million in collaboration with the Government of Quebec for silvicultural work and the restoration of bridges and culverts on multi-use forest roads. Workers have also benefited from their fair share of support, with the Government of Canada introducing some of the most generous measures in history to help them through the economic crisis.

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