A rendering of the Chief Louis Crossing development. (Photo via Tk’emlúps te Secwepemc)
Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc is getting $1 million from the provincial government to further develop the Chief Louis Crossing at the intersection of the Yellowhead Highway and Shuswap Road.
That site is currently home to Swelaps Market, with Tk’emlúps planning to add a gas station as other office and other retail space over the next several months.
“We are grateful for the additional funding that the Province of British Columbia has confirmed today,” Tk’emlúps Kukpi7 Rosanne Casimir said, in a statement. “Our goal is to responsibly develop our lands in a forward-thinking and sustainable way, while establishing a financial legacy and supporting our community’s journey toward economic self-determination.”
“This funding will allow us to further develop Chief Louis Crossing, creating a space that can welcome businesses and entrepreneurs from the Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc and surrounding communities.”
A site map of the Chief Louis Crossing development. (Photo via Tk’emlúps te Secwepemc)
The money going to Tk’emlúps is part of $33 million being doled out as part of the second intake of the Rural Economic Diversification and Infrastructure Program (REDIP). About $4 million will be going to 15 projects in communities in the Southern Interior.
“Very excited about this because it means that 15 more communities are getting what they know that the need and want delivered in their backyards,” Russell said, on The NL Noon Report.
“One of the conversations this morning was about just the amount of pride in the group that is working [at the Swelaps Market] about being part of this new thing. Those are good opportunities, I think, where we’re able to help support and facilitate and make room for that pride.”
Tk’emlúps got $100,000 during the first intake of REDIP in April last year, with that money meant to mentor and teach best practices when it comes to Indigenous economic development and First Nations land development.
The Province says the first two years of REDIP has led to around $99 million being invested in more than 300 projects across rural B.C. in 2022-23 and 2023-24.
It also says there will be a maximum of $33 million available through the third intake of REDIP, with applications being accepted between July and October.
