Voyageur Services Limited Completes High-Priority Land Clearing for Hydro One's Holt Road Substation
'This project is a perfect example of what can be accomplished through urgency, alignment, and shared values'— Clint Keeler, CEO, Voyageur Services
MISSISSAUGAS OF SCUGOG ISLAND FIRST NATION, ONTARIO, CANADA, July 23, 2025 / EINPresswire.com / -- Voyageur Services Limited, in support of Aecon Power Division, has successfully completed the land clearing scope for Hydro One 's upcoming Holt Road substation. The project was delivered on an accelerated schedule to meet a critical environmental deadline, ensuring work was completed before April 1st to avoid disruption to the nesting season of native birds and bats.
The completion of this work exemplifies how companies can work in collaboration with First Nations and Indigenous businesses to undertake projects, while meeting critical project timelines and milestones. Building in partnership truly results in better projects.
Mobilizing within hours of receiving the call, Voyageur executed the scope with a firm commitment to environmental protection, archaeological sensitivity, and Indigenous best practices. Specialized crane mats, provided by Northern Mat & Bridge, enabled heavy equipment access without disturbing the ground, ensuring full compliance with cultural and environmental standards.
'This project is a perfect example of what can be accomplished through urgency, alignment, and shared values,' said Clint Keeler, President of Voyageur Services Limited. 'We're proud of our team for responding so quickly and professionally—and we're thankful to our partners for their trust in our ability to deliver without compromise.'
'We are proud of the strong partnership between the Mississaugas of Scugog Island First Nation and Hydro One, exemplified by the successful Holt Road substation project,' said Chief Kelly LaRocca, Chief of the Mississaugas of Scugog Island First Nation. 'Through our majority ownership of Voyageur Services Limited via Noozhoo Nokiiyan LP, we are driving economic opportunities while upholding our commitment to environmental stewardship and cultural respect. This project showcases our community's ability to deliver exceptional results with integrity and collaboration.'
The work was conducted safely, efficiently, and ahead of schedule. The site was fully cleared before the environmental cut-off date, allowing Hydro One's next phase of development to proceed without delay.
'This wasn't just about speed,' Keeler added. 'It was about doing it right—protecting the environment, respecting Indigenous archaeological best practices, and ensuring the work met the highest possible standard. Meeting those goals is what defined this as a successful project.'
Voyageur extends its appreciation to Aecon Power Division, Hydro One, and Northern Mat & Bridge for their collaboration, trust, and shared commitment to meaningful project outcomes.
Clint Keeler
Voyageur Services
+1 905-261-0406
email us here
Visit us on social media:
Legal Disclaimer:
EIN Presswire provides this news content 'as is' without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the author above.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Cautious optimism in B.C. after PM announces $1.2B in softwood lumber support
Analysts are expressing cautious optimism after the prime minister announced $1.2 billion in federal support for the struggling softwood lumber industry, one of B.C.'s largest employers. Prime Minister Mark Carney announced Tuesday that the federal government would be spending up to $700 million in loan guarantees for forestry companies and $500 million, largely in grants and contributions, to spur product development and market diversification for the hard-hit industry and millions for retraining lumber workers. B.C.'s forestry industry has taken major hits over the last few years, as escalating U.S. duties on softwood lumber imports have piled atop a number of other challenges that have led to thousands of job losses. Members of the province's forestry industry, as well as B.C.'s forests minister, welcomed the Tuesday funding announcement, especially as the federal government has previously been accused of ignoring the softwood lumber industry's struggles in B.C. Analysts say that long-term changes and diversification in the forestry industry are needed to keep it sustainable, but resolving the industry's barriers to U.S. exports would be the most effective short-term measure. "I'm going to be looking forward to working with my colleague [federal Natural Resources Minister] Tim Hodson on ensuring British Columbia gets its fair share of those dollars, that capital funding, that I hope will be able to help transform this sector," B.C. Forests Minister Ravi Parmar said Tuesday. Parmar told The Canadian Press that the share would be somewhere between 40 and 50 per cent, given the size of the provincial softwood lumber industry. The minister commended Carney's government for not ignoring the softwood lumber industry, and said former prime minister Justin Trudeau's government had not made it a priority. "I would say from the previous Liberal administration to this one, it's a night and day comparison," Parmar told CBC News Network. "I really appreciate the prime minister showing very strong leadership on ensuring that we can get a long-term softwood lumber deal."Push for diversification The United States has long been the single largest market for B.C. lumber exports, representing over two-thirds of the market for the approximately $10-billion industry. But amid a series of challenges for the province's forestry industry — including a mountain pine beetle infestation that has killed hundreds of thousands of trees — mills have been closing around the province in recent years, and major forestry companies are opening up new mills in the United States. In 2023, numbers from Statistics Canada showed B.C. had lost more than 40,000 forest-sector jobs since the early 1990s. In addition to the Tuesday funding announcement, Carney announced that his government would use Canadian lumber and workers as part of its promise to build affordable homes. Kurt Niquidet, the president of the B.C. Lumber Trade Council, said the liquidity supports announced by Carney on Tuesday would help in the short term, but a long-term negotiated settlement with the U.S. needs to be the priority. "The diversification, as well as sort of growing the market within Canada, that is helpful as well and welcome. But that's going to be more of a longer-term initiative," Niquidet Taylor, a forest industry analyst and consultant, said that B.C.'s forestry industry had been struggling to make inroads in non-U.S. markets for some time. "We've been trying for decades to expand our product exports into the markets, and the U.S. is the best fit — partly because we make what they want, and the other markets around the world don't really want what we make," he said. "So it's a real challenge to get out of the U.S. market."Last month, the U.S. Commerce Department decided to hike anti-dumping duties on Canadian lumber to 20.56 per cent. If combined with countervailing duties, the total tariff rate on Canadian lumber would be almost 35 per cent. Parmar noted that U.S. President Donald Trump also has initiated a federal investigation into U.S. imports of lumber and timber, citing "national security," which could further impact B.C.'s forestry industry when combined with the tariffs. Still, he remained optimistic about the B.C. government's efforts to diversify its lumber exports, particularly in the Asia-Pacific region in Vietnam and Japan. "We're going to be looking to find those new partners, and I think the U.S. administration is going to be taking a number of steps, I hope, to be able to secure a deal," he said. "But if they don't, I think they're going to be paying the price for higher lumber costs in the years ahead." Call for more direct support One union representative welcomed the federal money announced Tuesday, but said more needed to be done to get money directly to struggling workers. "The offer of loan guarantees — that needs to be tied to job guarantees and community guarantees, and making sure that the money is going to keep the industry where it is ... and keep people working," said Gavin McGarrigle, western regional director for the Unifor union, which represents more than 22,000 forestry workers across sits on the B.C. government's softwood lumber advisory council and said that the federal government needs to consult with industry and unions to ensure the money is being spent appropriately. "It's no good to talk about training people for the jobs of the future if they don't have a job today," he said. "And that's what people in these sectors and industries are looking at, making sure that they get a guarantee that their facility is going to be stable through the next year or two."
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Canad Inns founder Leo Ledohowski remembered as 'icon of the industry'
Canad Inns founder Leo Ledohowski left a tremendous legacy on Manitoba's hospitality industry, business and political leaders said Tuesday as they shared memories of the late hotelier. The cause of Ledohowski's death and his age are unclear. Canad Inns has nine locations in Manitoba and one in North Dakota. "The best hoteliers do something very special for a community; they create an unforgettable sense of place, and sense of welcome," Winnipeg Mayor Scott Gillingham said in a post on X (formerly Twitter). "Leo achieved this with stunning success, so that people always felt at home and always wanted to return: and all Winnipeggers have benefited from what he accomplished." Community advocate His post said Canad Innss is one of Manitoba's largest employers and is the 14th-largest hotel chain in the country. Gillingham said Ledohowski was a community advocate who supported local causes, including Partners in the Park, the Health Sciences Centre Foundation and the United Way of Winnipeg. Michael Juce, president and CEO of the Manitoba Hotel Association, said Ledohowski's death was a huge loss for the industry. Juce said Ledohowski was a member of the association for decades and volunteered as a board member. The Canad Inns founder was always quick to offer to help out, Juce said, pointing to Ledohowski's efforts to grow the industry and the wider community it serves. "He had a tremendous impact, tremendous legacy and [he's] an icon of the industry," Juce said. Ledohowski also served on the board of the Hotel Association of Canada and the Business Council of Manitoba. The council's president and CEO, Bram Strain, said Ledohowski was a very active member for two decades, leaving a lasting impact on the province's business community. "Leo was a great man who cared a great deal about the community, the business community, the social fabric of our city and our province," Strain said. "He's going to be missed." Ledohowski became a member of the Order of Manitoba in 2022. In a post on X, Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew said Ledohowski was a "great business leader in Manitoba and a trailblazer in Canada's hospitality industry" and a "generous community builder whose impact will be felt for generations."
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
City of Yellowknife reassessing fire hall expansion after bids come in higher than expected
Yellowknife's city planner says a fire hall expansion plan is being reassessed after bids for the project came in much higher than expected. The city has budgeted $21 million to renovate and expand the 36-year-old building. The original cost estimate for the project, from 2020, ranged from around $3 million to $7 million. The city received three bids on a recent tender to do the work, and they ranged from $35 million to more than $39 million. City manager Stephen Van Dine says they came as a shock. "We didn't expect it to be this much higher, but as it turned out the study in 2020 didn't think so either," Van Dine said. "But here we are and we're now being faced with an inflated price, so the question today is, where to from here?" When the fire hall was built in 1989, Yellowknife's population was around 15,000 people — it's now more than 20,000 — and the fire department employed fewer people. In 2021, city council received a report highlighting that the Yellowknife Fire Department had outgrown the existing fire hall and that the building had inadequate HVAC systems, no air locks to control exhaust emissions, and not enough space to accommodate an increase in staff. The tender issued this year for the fire hall expansion included addressing these issues and others. Of the city's $21 million budgeted for the project, around $10 million has been allocated to start the project this year with an additional $5 million set aside for 2026 and in 2027. Van Dine says one option that may be feasible is to construct a new building instead of renovating the current structure. He says the tendering process has been cancelled while staff decide whether to bring the topic forward during the budget process for 2026, or to bring it to council before then. In the meantime, he said the fire hall is still operational — for now. "It's not ideal, the issues that have been identified need to be addressed," said Van Dine. "If there was an imminent health and safety risk for folks today, then absolutely we'd be doing whatever remedial measures necessary to make sure that it's a safe place to work." The money for the expansion project would come from the city's capital fund. Van Dine says he is not aware of any territorial or federal grants that could help cover the costs. "Unlike some of the other projects where we may be eligible for some federal offsets or some offsets from other levels of government to help us with our capital projects, this isn't one of those. So it really would come down to decisions with council on how best to proceed," said Van Dine. The tender documents for the project total over 1,000 pages. The proposed plan would have seen renovations not only to ventilation, piping and building space, but also to the overall look and feel of the building, with exterior work, painting, roofing, furniture, and finishes.
