Some of the stimulus money will be used to replace public washrooms on the Rideau Canal Skateway, a 7.8-kilometre outdoor skating path. (Jonathan Hayward/Canadian Press)

The federal government will provide up to $35 million in stimulus money to the National Capital Commission so it can spruce up several Ottawa-area properties, Transport and Infrastructure Minister John Baird says.

The commission is a Crown corporation that owns land and buildings on either side of the Ottawa River surrounding the country’s capital.

Baird, who is the member of Parliament for Ottawa West–Nepean, said the funding will help boost the economy and create jobs in the area.

"One of the challenges that I think the NCC has had, is that up until two years ago, they didn’t have a capital budget,” Baird said Wednesday.

“So they had to beg, borrow and steal from their existing budget to make anything happen, so there’s a significant amount of repairs and work that’s built up over the last 20 years.”

The stimulus money, to be spread among 14 different projects, includes:

• $3.75 million to replace public skating facilities along the Rideau Canal.
• $4.05 million to repair the Portage Bridge that connects Ottawa and Gatineau.
• $6.3 million for the rehabilitation of Rockliffe Parkway retaining wall.
• $3 million to renovate public washrooms at Hog’s Back Park.

Baird said Ottawa residents and visitors should be able to see some improvements to city parks, bridges, roads and public spaces in a matter of months, and all construction is expected to be finished in the next 15 months.

The City of Ottawa has also received federal stimulus money for infrastructure projects — up to $375 million over the next two years.

The stimulus funding is part of the federal government’s economic action plan to help stimulate job creation during the economic downturn.