RDKB Community Initiatives & Affected Areas projects open for public comment until April 27
By RDKB
The Regional District of Kootenay Boundary Columbia Basin Trust Community Initiatives and Affected Areas programs (CIP/AAP) 2020 project applications are available online for public comment until April 27 at jointheconversation.rdkb.com.
The public can review and download detailed descriptions of projects proposed in electoral areas and municipalities that are within the Columbia Basin. Basin residents within the RDKB who register on the site have can send comments to RDKB staff and directors about which projects would most benefit their own electoral area or municipality and why. They can also ask questions or contact the RDKB for more information.
The RDKB had originally scheduled community meetings to engage with the public about the CIP/AAP in April of this year, but the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent public health orders required the RDKB to cancel all face-to-face meetings and move the engagement process entirely online as of April 17. To date, the RDKB has seen 117 residents participate, but wants to encourage more comments before the April 27 deadline.
The CIP/AAP is intended to be flexible and incorporate community-based funding decisions. The programs support local projects that provide additional value to Basin communities, and that benefit the broad community and public good. Program funds are distributed annually to the Trust’s local government partners: the regional districts of East Kootenay, Central Kootenay and Kootenay Boundary, the City of Revelstoke, Town of Golden, Village of Valemount, and to our Indigenous partners: Ɂaq’am, Ɂakisq’nuk, Lower Kootenay (Yaqan nuɁkiy), Tobacco Plains Indian Band (Ɂakink’umŧasnuqŧiɁit) and the Shuswap Indian Band.
For more information about specific CIP/AAP projects proposed in the RDKB, visit this link. For more information about the programs themselves, visit cbt.org.
