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Mid-year update

The first six month in Columbia Shuswap Regional District Electoral Area C
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It’s hard to believe that we’re halfway through 2017 already! With a number of key projects ongoing in Area C, a progress update is in order as follows:

• Area C Governance Study – all open houses have been completed and the online survey is now closed. A big thank you goes to all who provided their input regarding our future governance. The final report and recommendations will be approved by the Governance Study Committee and will be reviewed by the Ministry of Community, Sport and Cultural Development and the CSRD Board.

• Area C Parks Study – all open houses and input gathering is now complete. Our sincere thanks go to everyone who contributed to this extensive process. The Area C Parks Commission will review a proposed short list of priority projects and will make recommendations as appropriate.

• Shuswap Labour Market Study – this large and ambitious regional study is a collaborative effort involving Community Futures Shuswap, First Nations bands, the Métis community, City of Salmon Arm, CSRD Area C, Okanagan College and several area businesses and community organizations. The provincial Community Employer Partner Program funded this program under its Labour Market Partnership Funding program. The study objectives are to:

– identify current labour market and human resources barriers and opportunities;

– complete an analysis of these results with the community partners;

– facilitate a community-led collaborative approach to develop a community-based implementation strategy.

Many businesses and residents are being interviewed to collect opinions and experiences and there is an online survey to provide your input. The survey can be accessed at www.beyourfuture.ca until July 29. All employers and employees in Area C are encouraged to complete the survey. Many thanks go out to the South Shuswap Chamber of Commerce for their contributions to this study.

• A Regional Economic Development Plan – EDCD Consulting has been commissioned to research and develop a Regional Economic Development Plan for CSRD Areas C, D, E and F, and the District of Sicamous. This plan will guide economic development activities for the next three to five years by providing objectives and strategies ,as well as a set of actionable initiatives aimed at improving our local economy. This study should be completed by the end of October and, once again, we are grateful for the participation by the South Shuswap Chamber of Commerce.

• Noise Bylaw Consultation Process – a draft noise bylaw has undergone first reading and is now posted on the CSRD website for public input. Information on the bylaw and a comments form can be accessed at http://www.csrd.bc.ca/proposed-noise-bylaw. Comments can be made until Aug.18.

• Area C Sewer System – work has continued on this important infrastructure project. At the June CSRD Board meeting, three bylaws were passed which will enhance our ability to obtain infrastructure grants from the federal and provincial governments in 2018.

• Tappen-Sunnybrae Fire Hall Expansion – a contract for a $665,000 expansion to this fire hall has been awarded to McDiarmid Construction. This expansion will enable this busy firehall to house additional equipment and provide first responders with a much better training and meeting area.

As you can see, there’s a lot going on in Area C; it will be very exciting to see these plans come to fruition.

-Paul Demenok is the Area C Director for the Columbia Shuswap Regional District.