Sarah Rennie – LJI reporter
The Town of Huntingdon is looking ahead and planning for the future.
Mayor André Brunette and councillor Dominic Tremblay presented the town’s 2024-2034 Sustainable Development Master Plan to citizens on October 29 at the Salle Culturelle Alfred-Langevin. Both referred to the document as the roadmap that will be used to guide decisions concerning the town’s management, development, and planning efforts in the years ahead.
Spearheaded by the board of directors of the Huntingdon Economic Development Corporation, the ambitious 10-year plan is the result of a two-year process that prioritized public participation through workshops, focus groups, and consultations. The municipality received 300 responses to a survey, and over 50 residents took part in an interactive consultation in June 2023.
The finalized plan was adopted by the municipal council on May 28 of this year; however, the document will remain active, and the council has acknowledged that it will have to evolve with the town over the next decade.
The plan is structured around five strategic orientations or objectives that reflect many of the concerns or priorities identified by citizens. These touch on inclusivity, transport and mobility, climate change, the local economy, and the town’s heritage.
The plan includes a list of strategic initiatives and projects to be completed in the short, medium, and long term that address each of the objectives. These include the establishment of a community and cultural centre, the installation of a community kitchen, the development of a town-centre revitalization plan, the creation of a new linear park, the adoption of a greening plan for the town, and much more.
“I think all the ideas and all the intentions from our citizens are in this document, and we’re going to fight hard. We’re going to try and do most of these initiatives, budget permitting,” said Brunette, while noting that several projects were already in place or in progress.
“There are a lot of grants out there, and we are definitely going to try and get funding for each project,” Brunette added, while reassuring citizens that the town intends to develop within its means.