Another $1.8 Million for OKP

An additional $1.8 million will be flowing to the construction of One Kids Place (OKP) Children’s Treatment Centre Nipissing MPP Monique Smith announced today at the temporary location on Stockdale Road.

The province has already committed $7.3 million to the project and Smith said the new funding to address inflationary issues is just one more example of the McGuinty Government’s commitment to the children in Nipissing.

“This is a real success story,” Smith tells the OKP staff and service users.

“I could not be more delighted that our government is investing this additional funding, which will allow One Kids Place to focus what it does best ... providing high-quality services to children and youth with special needs.”

Executive Director Judy Sharpe said the additional funding is welcomed news as the project gets set to start the fundraising phase.

“This will assist us to ensure that the community doesn’t have to pick up those costs as we move forward.”

“We are strapped for space. We are begging and borrowing space all over the community,” she explains.

“By 2009 we will have the proper space to deliver the programming that is demanded of us.”

The centre focuses on delivering services to children and youth with special needs such as communicative, physical, developmental disabilities as well as chronic and/or severe illness.