I want to extend my heartfelt congratulations to the Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport—not simply as a fellow Ottawa U alumnus, or because of his remarkable athletic achievements, but for his securing of $200 million in the Community Sport and Recreation Infrastructure Fund, a fund that will invest in new and upgraded sport, recreation and community facilities across the province.

Mr. Speaker, as the parent of a very active teenager, a former community football coach and an elected official, I can definitely say that investment in sport and recreation is paramount to the future of our society.

The lack of sport and recreation facilities is one of the reasons I ran for city council in 2010. With the support of Ottawa’s greatest mayor, Jim Watson, we were able to turn an empty field into the much-heralded François Dupuis Recreation Centre, now one of the focal points of our community. We built 12 new parks in Orléans. We expanded Millennium Park to include a stadium that would rival our local universities. We added a cricket pitch and splash pads and came very close to adding a dome—a dome that our community still needs.

Now more than ever, Millennium Park needs to keep pace and is ready for further investment and expansion. It could include a track and field complex that will benefit many segments of our community, from seniors walking around the track on its grippy surface to avoid falling to helping the future success of track and field athletes and athletes from all sports who will use the facility to train and hone their skills, such as the athletes with Gridiron Academy.

Ottawa is a hotbed of athletics. I’d invite the minister to come to Orléans and meet some of the coaches and athletes who would benefit from this investment.