Community Futures Development Corporation of Thompson Country is currently carrying out a number of community economic development projects with the invaluable support of our partners. The projects aim to create sustainable employment opportunities and economic development in rural communities throughout the Thompson Region.
Chase Community Enhancement Plan
Tourism is a growing industry in the Village of Chase, as Chase is conveniently located near the Shuswap Lakes and Adams River, which attract many visitors in the summer. However, Chase residents feel that if their town was more attractive and amenities were improved, more tourists would visit Chase and stay for a longer period of time. In 2003, a committee was formed of concerned citizens, local business people, and the village council to develop a Chase Community Enhancement Plan. Acting in an advisory role, Community Futures secured funding from WD to carry out the plan. The Chase Community Enhancement Plan created a community vision and identified important gateways, focal points, trail routes, and greenway corridors that needed to be enhanced in the Village. The committee is now carrying out many of the recommendations made by the Plan.
One of the most important recommendations of the Chase Community Enhancement Plan is to design and construct two gateways at the east and west entrances to Chase to encourage travellers to visit the Village of Chase and increase business traffic in the community. In 2004, Community Futures began planning and constructing gateways to Chase with funding from the Village of Chase and WD. Urban Systems was contracted to design gateways which will tie the village to the most important local tourism activity, the Adams River sockeye salmon run. The new gateways feature a number of large steel salmon and are scheduled for completion in September 2004.
WaterSmart Bike Team
Community Futures is very proud to partner with the City of Kamloops to coordinate the WaterSmart Bike Team in the summers of 2003 and 2004. The WaterSmart program was developed by the City of Kamloops in 1992 to educate Kamloops citizens about conservation and the Kamloops water system. The WaterSmart Bike Team, made up of 4 university students, spends the summer months of May to August, when water consumption in Kamloops is the highest, spreading the WaterSmart message around the city. In 2004 the Bike Team visited approximately 20 schools and spoke to 1500 students about water conservation. The Team believes that WaterSmart techniques learned early in life will be used throughout life. The Team also rode their bikes through residential neighbourhoods and educated residents about smart water use, and set up information booths at special events around Kamloops. Since the WaterSmart Bike Team began educating the public about water conservation, water consumption in Kamloops has decreased 23%.
Softwood Lumber Agreement
In October 2002, the federal government announced they would invest $110 million into economic development projects in communities negatively impacted by U.S. tariffs imposed on Canada's softwood lumber industry. The projects would help communities transition away from traditional forest-based dependence to alternative and sustainable economic activities that have long term positive economic benefits. The communities of Clearwater and Vavenby in the Thompson Region were hit particularly hard, as the tariffs resulted in the closure of a Weyerhaeuser sawmill that employed approximately 180 people in these communities. In Western Canada, funding for these projects was provided by WD and funds were dispersed by Community Futures Development Corporations.
Community Futures Development Corporation of Thompson Country employed a Coordinator in Clearwater from May 2003 - March 2004 to review all applications made under the Softwood Industry Community Economic Adjustment Initiative (SICEAI). Community Futures received 66 expressions of interest from the Thompson Region. 5 moved forward to the next stage and 11 required more revision before they could be put forward. A total of $1.7 million has been dispersed in the Thompson Region under the SICEA.
