Here is some good news for leaseholders as well your your guests and day-use visitors. This information was released Wednesday, March 24 during the Ontario budget that was tabled.
As people look for more opportunities to safely enjoy the outdoors, Ontario is encouraging visits to provincial parks by offering free day‐use entry on Mondays through Thursdays, from May 1 to September 2, 2021. This will help more people and families enjoy outdoor activities such as canoeing, hiking and bike riding in provincial parks. Parks and conservation reserves have been places of safe recreation during the pandemic.
Ontario will also invest an estimated $3.9 million over three years to enhance the provincial park experience by using technology to better connect the people of Ontario with a one‐stop shop to help them find recreational opportunities that fit their location and interests. The province and local businesses will collaborate to develop ideas to bolster Ontario’s tourism economy and create new ways to enjoy provincial parks.
Interesting to note: dollar-wise, the MECP’s total budget for 2021-22 has gone up about 7% from 2020-21. They’ll have $687M to spend. This is one of the lowest budgets of all provincial ministries.
Elizabeth Cooper
Website Editor
