More than three-quarters of the new funding – $ 64 million – will go to new, fireproof public buildings such as community centers and libraries. The remaining $ 13 million is for small and medium-sized businesses and homeowners to rebuild fire-resistant homes. “These investments will place Lytton at the forefront, showing that sustainable, sustainable, zero-sum building is not the way of the future, it is the way it is today,” International Development Minister Harjit Sajjan told the media on Tuesday. surviving gas. station right on the hill from the core of the village. The announcement comes on the one-year anniversary of the June 30, 2021 disaster. The entire village, located about 150 miles northeast of Vancouver, was destroyed by fire after four days of record-breaking heat. Two people were killed. Hundreds of houses were reduced to charred rubble. The village hopes residents will have access to their homes to begin reconstruction by the end of September, officials said. “From pandemics to fires, atmospheric rivers and landslides, it has been a devastating year for Lytton,” said Mission-Matsqui-Fraser Canyon MP Brad Vis. “Today’s announcement is a very big deal. I really hope that today’s announcement of funding builds our community in a way that will enable it to withstand future climate-related disasters. “Lytton is worth so much.” Sajjan toured what is left of downtown Lytton later Tuesday, led by Owen Collins, who lost his own home. Few things have changed in the city, with many piles of rubble remaining untouched. Burnt houses and vehicles are seen in Lytton, BC, in March. (Gian Paolo Mendoza / CBC) The pace of recovery has affected residents and staff – three recovery managers have come and gone in the last 11 months. Mayor Jan Polderman said Tuesday that inheritance licensing and insurance negotiations are obstacles to faster progress. “Right now, the uninsured properties are being cleaned. We are still waiting for the insurance industry … to clean up its properties,” he said. Some residents who attended the announcement on Tuesday chatted with each other and shook their heads as politicians spoke. “I think it’s great that they’re finally getting on the plate, but I think something should have happened a long time ago,” said Tricia Thorpe, who lost her home last year and moved into her new, fireproof home in March. . CLOCKS Residents of Lytton, BC say federal reconstruction aid has taken a long time:
Lytton, BC, Residents Concerned About Delays as Ottawa Announces $ 77 Million for Reconstruction
Residents of Lytton, BC, say they are worried about more excuses and delays after the federal government announced plans to spend $ 77 million to help rebuild the community – a year after fires destroyed homes and businesses. “I think if announcements like this had been made, say last September, October, I think the community would have had a lot more hope … it has been a long time and everyone is just tired.” Through the new Lytton Homeowner Resilient Rebuild program, announced with funding on Tuesday, the government will provide $ 6 million in grants to homeowners “who have basic rebuilding insurance who want to rebuild homes with zero or fire resistance.” Asked when residents could wait to see the money, Sajjan also said insurance was a barrier. “This is something we would like to be able to tap a finger on and move on until tomorrow, but the challenges with secured spaces that do not have this cleaning are an obstacle,” Sajjan said. Damaged structures and vehicles appear in Lytton, BC, July 9, 2021. (Darryl Dyck / The Canadian Press) On Friday, Ottawa also announced a $ 207 million advance to BC as it completes applications for federal disaster relief funds for communities affected by last year’s wildfires. The full request is more than double. Polderman said he could take more than a decade to completely rebuild the village, citing other communities devastated by the fires, such as Slave Lake and Fort McMurray in Alberta and Paradise, California, as examples. “Generally speaking, you are looking at a four- to eight-year schedule to rebuild a community,” he said.
