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More than 16 months after the Conservatives announced a far-reaching, seven-year infrastructure plan valued at $33-billion and made up in part by the $8.8-billion Building Canada Fund, cultural projects across the country have yet to see a federal dime. But the Tories now say the approved beneficiaries have only to begin construction and submit proof of their spending and the dollars will be handed over.

"The money is flowing," said Chris Day, press secretary for Infrastructure Minister John Baird. "Money flows once construction begins and the bills come in."

Several arts organizations, including the Banff Centre and the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, were promised funds more than a year ago for expansion and renovation projects. In the time since, the government has been negotiating framework agreements with each province that outline the conditions for distributing funds, the last of which was signed on Sept. 5 in Manitoba. That signing marked the largest step toward overcoming the maze of documents and red tape that has dogged the project, but separate agreements are also required with each individual arts organization.

The federal election, called two days later, and subsequent cabinet shuffle further delayed some aspects of the agenda.

But Day says the Building Canada Fund is being treated with urgency under Baird, who took over from Lawrence Cannon in the portfolio, especially given the turbulent economic climate. "Minister Baird … has been tasked by the Prime Minister with accelerating infrastructure spending," he said.

Lindsay Blackett, Alberta's Minister of Culture and Community Spirit, has been an outspoken critic of the program's pace in the past, but he told The Globe and Mail that now all the necessary agreements have been ironed out, he hopes the federal government will heed widespread calls for spending.

"Infrastructure projects are great for the economy, and it's also a great message to the arts and culture community that they're not forgotten," he said.

Two weeks ago, Environment Minister Jim Prentice, a Calgary MP, said four Alberta projects owed a combined $105-million from the fund are being expedited, including the Banff Centre's new Kinnear Centre for Creativity and Innovation.

Alberta signed its pact with the Conservatives on April 29 and Banff began building the Kinnear Centre in June. So why has none of the $15-million promised arrived? The Banff Centre managed to hammer out its individual contribution agreement only recently, which at last put it in a position to claim federal dollars, according to spokeswoman Debra Hornsby.

"When the [project was approved] in October, 2007, it was clear that a number of agreements had to be signed before money could flow," she said.

In some instances, provinces are stepping in to fill the void: The Art Gallery of Alberta was promised $10-million for its expansion project in October of 2007, an amount that has been covered by the province until the federal dollars come through.

(Alberta has also forked over $27-million of the $30-million it promised the Kinnear Centre. That, along with $5-million already secured from another federal program called Cultural Spaces Canada, allowed the Banff Centre to put shovels in the ground.)

Other cities, however, have neither received their federal go-ahead nor have a provincial safety net. The City of Saskatoon submitted a list of half a dozen projects a few months ago, including the expansion and renovation of the Mendel Art Gallery. Saskatoon city manager Phil Richards said he had anticipated an acceleration of the program after the federal election and was heartened to hear federal Finance Minister Jim Flaherty comment on the program in his now-infamous economic update.

But as time marches on, he is becoming ever more anxious that the Mendel, which is in the midst of a fundraising campaign, hear its fate sooner rather than later.

"We had a little patience," he said. "But I think, without the federal funds, this is not going to go ahead and clearly we need an answer from the federal government as to whether this project is going to be funded or not."

Ontario, which signed its framework agreement on July 24, has had two smaller cultural projects approved thus far — the Burlington Performing Arts Centre and the Cambridge Performing Arts Complex — while others that submitted their applications later, such as Toronto's Royal Conservatory of Music, are awaiting approval. The province has been willing to give low-interest loans to projects in limbo since the provincial framework stipulates construction can't start before the federal green light.

Playing catch-up is Quebec, which on Sept. 3 became the second-last province to sign a framework agreement.

The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, which signed on with the fund in October of 2007, is awaiting $13-million and won't start building until its own contribution pact has been negotiated. With a provincial election also now behind them and a stable majority government in place, the museum hopes that can happen in the next few weeks, said spokeswoman Danielle Champagne.

And Montreal's Le Quartier des Spectacles has one of the richest outstanding agreements, a $40-million infusion to the construction on the Place des Arts facility that both province and city have matched. The Quartier also has one of the tightest timelines: Parts of the project are expected to be ready for the summer festival season in June.

Renée Sauriol, Montreal Mayor Gérald Tremblay's press attaché, said the city has pressed forward with construction while it worked to settle all its agreements and remains confident in the project's timeline despite the delays.

"We are impatient that that agreement is signed, but Le Quartier des Spectacles is in the main framework, so there's no reason to think there would be any change or issues," she said.

Day said the federal election shouldn't have delayed projects that were approved, but the government was unable to review or approve submissions during the campaign. He stressed the need to be judicious in deciding how to spend taxpayer dollars and could provide no estimate of the wait times for pending applications, which are evaluated on a case-by-case basis.

"One thing I've learned in the last nine months that I've been in government: Things never move as fast as I would like," Blackett said.