By Barb Brouwer
Contributor
The provincial government is handing out a total of $51 million in grant funding from its Local Government Housing Initiatives funding program. But it has some strings attached.
This funding, going to every municipality and regional district in B.C., including $218,000 to the Columbia Shuswap Regional District, is intended to support and supplement local government activities and projects to meet the requirements of updated provincial legislation. As well, the money is to be used prior to Dec. 31, 2025. Any funding that remains at that time must be returned to the province.
Some examples of eligible projects include a new project or update to an existing plan or bylaw, housing needs reports, official community plans (OCP), zoning bylaws, development cost charge bylaw, transportation, parks or neighbourhood plans, procedures bylaws, works and services bylaws, infrastructure master plans, long-term financial plans, condition and risk assessments and more.
An attachment to a Jan. 18 letter to CSRD chief administrative officer John MacLean from the Ministry of Housing indicated the funding could be used for project management and coordination, data collection, community engagement activities, collaboration with neighbouring local governments, Indigenous governments and communities, and partner organizations and several more eligible projects.
At the Feb. 15 board meeting in Salmon Arm, CSRD Electoral Area A Rural Golden director Karen Cathcart asked if the planning department had any idea of how the funds might be used within the regional district.
Development services manager Gerald Christie pointed out the funding is meant to go to projects to encourage more housing to be developed within all local governments in the province.
“It could go towards work on geohazard assessments, processes to streamline development approvals, amendments to zoning bylaws or amendments to official community plans,” he said. “At the staff level, we’ll be looking at all options to see what would make the most sense and will be coming back to board soon with what could be done that’s best for the CSRD.”
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