The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

Other Â¥ommunities in the Top Seven for 2007 include Dundee, Scotland; Gangnam, South Korea; Issy les Moulineaux, France; Otiawaâ€"Gatineau, Ontario Quebec; Sunderland. Unit ed Kingdom; and Tallin, Estonia Waterloo makes smartâ€"city short list This group was selected from the short list of Smart 21 Cities, which the ICF announced in November The 2007 submission was created by a committee comprised of a diverse group of people from both public and private sector groups, among others, Far brother said After Waterloo made it into the Top Seven in 2006, this group "felt it was imporâ€" tant to continue that jourâ€" ney and resubmit this year," he said. More funding would ‘finish the job,‘ says KidsAbility CEO Continued from page 3 YMCA support puts city a step closer to new facility Continued from page 1 exciting facility a reality." YMCA repesentatives delivered the news during a Waterloo city council meetâ€" ing Monday night. The support brings the city one step closer to finalâ€" izing its proposal to team up with the Kitchenerâ€"Waterloo YMCA arid the University of Waterloo to provide a comâ€" bined branch library/recreâ€" ation facility and sports fields. The sports fields would cover 23 acres on the Uniâ€" versity of Waterloo‘s west campus on Westmount Road. Continued from page 5 groups, such as Waterloo city council, were rewarded last year when KidsAbility received additional funding to take 475 of those kids off the waiting list. With about 700 kids still waiting for necessary servicâ€" es, Swatridge said the centre needs more help. "The message is simple and it‘s twofold. The provinâ€" cial government did a wonâ€" derful thing a year ago in 2006; they reduced the wait list of specialâ€"needs kids by 40 per cent. workforce, innovation, digi tal inclusion and marketing The branch library would be 21,000 square feet, while the recreation facility would be 45,000 to 50,000 square feet. The building would be located on Fischerâ€"Hallman Road, where it connect to Bearinger Road. In 2007. it‘s time to fin One of the next steps in this process will be for Halâ€" loran and Farbrother to attend an Asia immersion lab, which will visit other communities that have made it into the Top Seven, including Tianjin,. China; Mitaka, Japan; and Taipei, Taiwan â€" last year‘s winner. The Top Intelligent Comâ€" munity will be announced in May at the ICF Conferâ€" ence in New York. Waterloo will profit regardless of whether or not it wins the title though, Whaley said. "The benefit from being top seven is something that will stay with us and benefit us, and the global exposure will really pay dividends." The committee‘s leaderâ€" ship group includes Jim Balâ€" sillie, the coâ€"CEO of Research in Motion, Mayor Brenda Halloran and David Johnston, the president of the University of Waterloo. In return, the city would agree to service 87 acres of the university‘s northwest campus. According to the Kâ€"W YMCA release, the organizaâ€" tion has actively been workâ€" ing to establish a new family facility in Waterloo for many years, and a study conductâ€" ed in February 2006 conâ€" firmed the need for a recreâ€" ation facility on the west side. When the project was proposed, the Kâ€"W YMCA indicated that it needed until January 2007 to comâ€" plete its due diligence and confirm its participation. Finishing the job would require an additional $1.5 million in annual operating funds, he said in an interâ€" view. Council will move forâ€" ward with Swatridge‘s request after he provides them with the appropriate information to be included in their letters. "You have a lot of supâ€" port here at the council chambers," Mayor Brenda Halloran said. Coun. Scott Witmer said there‘s no question about the importance of the work KidsAbility does The city‘s portion of the project‘s cost would sit at $23 million. Since that time, the Kâ€"W YMCA has conducted a market research study and completed a financial analyâ€" sis of its plans for the future. ish the job." Last week, the Kâ€"W "We‘re confident that a sustainable family YMCA can operate at this site. We‘re also confident that we have the ability to fund our financial commitment as defined in the memoranâ€" dum of understanding," said John Haddock, CEO of the Kâ€"W YMCA. "We have been working towards a new family YMCA in Waterloo for many years. We‘re excited to move forward with this projâ€" ect in partnership with the City of Waterloo, the Waterâ€" loo public library and the University of Waterloo." "And I would be more than happy to write a letter to (the provincial governâ€" ment) outlining the imporâ€" tance of more funding for this centre." YMCA‘s board of directors voted unanimously to proâ€" ceed with the project and negotiate a legal agreement with the City of Waterloo based upon the existing memorandum of underâ€" standing with the city. The proposal will go before city council for final approval later this year. FOR MORE DETAILS, VISIT US AT www.totalwomanshow.com OR CALL 519â€"895â€"5258 LJf/‘/ HI II-EJ] ILI Pick up your advance ticket today and save $2 available at The Record 160 King St. E., Kitchener THE RECORD Â¥*X Olese nR