Announcements
COMMUNITY RESILIENCY INITIATIVE FIRESMART COMMUNITY FUNDING & SUPPORTS PROGRAM
Community Wildfire Resiliency funding
Applications are now being invited for the 2022 Community Resiliency Initiative FireSmart Community Funding & Supports program. Local governments and First Nations in BC are eligible to apply for funding to undertake community-based FireSmart planning and activities that reduce the community’s risk from wildfire. The intake is open until October 8, 2021.
Eligible applicants may apply for up to $50,000 or $150,000, depending on their specific risk of wildfire. There are opportunities to apply for additional funding for regional districts, and for fuel management proposals that include Provincial Crown land within and adjacent to community boundaries.
Full details are now available in the 2022 CRI FCFS application materials.
The First Nations’ Emergency Services Society, Forest Enhancement Society of BC and Union of BC Municipalities are working with the Ministry of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations & Rural Development to deliver the FireSmart Community Funding & Supports program.
MINISTRY OF TRANSPORTATION AND INFRASTRUCTURE
Active Transportation Grant Program Now Open!
On June 24, 2021, Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure, Rob Fleming, announced the opening of the 2021/22 intake of the B.C. Active Transportation Infrastructure Grant Program. The B.C. Active Transportation Grant Program supports goals set out in CleanBC and Move. Commute. Connect. – B.C.’s strategy for cleaner, more active transportation.
This cost sharing grant program provides funding for network planning (up to $50,000) and infrastructure development (up to $500,000) for communities as follows:
- 80% Indigenous communities or their local government(s) partners
- 70% Population less than 15,000
- 60% Population between 15,000 to 25,000
- 50% Population over 25,000
Indigenous and local governments are invited to submit funding proposals to B.C.’s Active Transportation Grant Program until July 30, 2021 at 11:59 p.m.
For program details and to apply please visit B.C. Active Transportation Infrastructure Grant Program.
If you have any questions or require assistance with your application please contact program staff at BCATgrants@gov.bc.ca or by telephone at 778 974-5469.
BOARD OF EXAMINERS, MINISTRY OF MUNICIPAL AFFAIRS
Four local government employees have been recognized for their education and work experience while working in the local government field in BC, and are being awarded a Certificate by the Board of Examiners.
Certificate in Local Government Service Delivery
Scott Mossing, Assistant Manager of Recreation Facility Operations, City of Courtenay
Certificate in Local Government Administration
Michael Dillabaugh, Director of Finance, City of Langford
Certificate in Local Government Statutory Administration
Michael Dillabaugh, Director of Finance, City of Langford
Rachel Dumas, Director of Corporate Services, District of North Saanich
PLANNING INSTITUTE OF BRITISH COLUMBIA
PIBC is excited to announce the winners of its annual Awards for Excellence in Planning. The Institute annually recognizes the professional work and individual accomplishments of members across British Columbia and Yukon through its awards and recognition program. This year, the Awards for Excellence in Planning honoured the best in professional planning work undertaken by members in four categories.
Due to the current COVID-19 safety protocols, the 2021 PIBC Award winners were announced online on Thursday, June 17th, during the PIBC 2021 Annual Conference – North of Normal (June 15-18). It is with great pleasure that PIBC announced the following 2021 winners:
AWARDS FOR EXCELLENCE IN POLICY PLANNING, CITY & URBAN AREAS
- Gold: City of Victoria - Victoria Housing Strategy Phase Two 2019-2022
- Silver: City of North Vancouver - Safe Mobility Strategy
AWARDS FOR EXCELLENCE IN PLANNING PRACTICE, CITY & URBAN AREAS
- Gold: Canada Lands Company, MST Development Corporation, & DIALOG – Heather Lands Rezoning Plan
- Silver: City of New Westminster - Municipal Regulations to Deter Renovictions
- Honourable Mention: City of New Westminster - New Westminster COVID-19 Pandemic Response: Transforming Planning Practice and Saving Lives
AWARDS FOR EXCELLENCE IN POLICY PLANNING, SMALL TOWN & RURAL AREAS - Gold: Salmo Valley Early Childhood Advisory Committee, C+S Planning Group, John Foster Planning, Splash:Design, & Licker GeoSpatial Consulting - Salmo Valley Child Care Inventory and Action Plan
- Silver: Thompson-Nicola Regional District - North Thompson Official Community Plan
- Honourable Mention: City of West Kelowna & Lanarc Consulting - West Kelowna's Community Vision, #OurWK a Vision to 2040
AWARDS FOR RESEARCH & NEW DIRECTIONS IN PLANNING - Gold: Third Space Community Planning & Generation Squeeze - Regulating Short Term Rentals: A Toolkit for Canadian Local Governments
- Silver: Plassurban Consulting Inc - Child in the City: Planning Communities for Children and their Families
Congratulations to this year’s PIBC Award winners! For more information about the Awards, please visit http://www.pibc.bc.ca/pibc-awards.
LANDSURE SYSTEMS LTD.A Subsidiary of the Land Title and Survey Authority of British Columbia LOTA Compliance Requirements for Local Governments Local governments (e.g. Municipalities, Regional Districts, Townships, or Villages) are required to comply with the Land Owner Transparency Act (LOTA), which directs that an application to register an interest in land must be submitted together with a transparency declaration. This includes interests in land that are registered in the name of a local government, in the name of a wholly owned subsidiary of a local government, in the name of a corporate nominee or some other entity. There are very limited exclusions to the requirement to file a transparency declaration; only where the land is an excluded Indigenous land or prescribed land under section 6 of LOTA. In certain circumstances, local governments may also be required to file a transparency report. Interests in land under LOTA include an estate in fee simple; a life estate in land; a right to occupy land under a lease that has a term of more than 10 years, or a right under an agreement for sale to occupy land, or require the transfer of an estate in fee simple. Information filed under LOTA is housed in a publicly accessible registry known as the Land Owner Transparency Registry (LOTR). To understand more about legal obligations under LOTA, local governments are encouraged to seek guidance from a legal professional. To learn more about LOTA, please visit: |
