7.2 million dollars.
That was the funding announcement made in Quesnel on Friday morning for phase 2 of the West Quesnel Land Stability project.
It is an equal partnership between the Municipal Government, the Federal Government, and the Provincial Government.
Cariboo North MLA Coralee Oakes, BC’s outgoing Minister of Community, Sport and Cultural Development, made the announcement at Wilma Hanson Park.
Oakes says this one was particularly special to her.
She calls it a full circle moment as in her last official duty of this Ministry she gets to provide such important funding to the community she is from.
Oakes, who will now take over as the Minister of Small Business, spent two terms on Quesnel City Council working on this file as well.
Quesnel Mayor Bob Simpson, who ironically was the MLA for most of this file, is also pleased to get the money and hopefully complete the work needed to stop or at least get under control the land movement in parts of West Quesnel.
Simpson says he doesn’t want to mislead people in the area but it is the City’s hope that this will lead to the completion of the land stability program and the lifting of the moratoriums that are currently in place.
He says right now people can build over there but must have a geotechnical engineer sign off on it first.
Simpson says they also plan to do some much-needed road improvements in the area.
He says they have some money set aside for that once the storm drains are in place, something he says will bring the total investment in the area up to 10 million dollars.
Simpson says should the 2nd phase work the way they plan that will also free up some tax dollars that can then be spent on infrastructure in other areas of Quesnel.
There are around 750 homes in the land slippage area.
(Files from George Henderson)