People who are vulnerable and have low incomes will be supported with nearly $150,000 in government funding for local poverty-reduction projects in the Kootenays.

The Province, through BC Housing, has purchased the North Shore Inn in Nelson to provide 30 homes with supports for people experiencing or at risk of homelessness.

More parents in the Kootenays will see dramatic savings as seven child care sites are welcomed into the $10 a Day child care program.

People in 55 communities throughout the province, including 19 communities in the Interior, will benefit from more than $17 million in grants in lieu of municipal property taxes this year.

A new apartment building with 39 new one-bedroom rental units designed to be affordable for members of the local workforce is now open in Nelson.

British Columbia’s network of public electric vehicle (EV) fast-charging stations is expanding with the opening of nine new stations between Fernie and Nelson, making it easier for people travelling highways 3, 3A and 95 to charge up their EVs.

Families, seniors and people with disabilities with low to moderate incomes in Nelson are moving into 43 affordable rental homes, with the first affordable housing project opening in the community in almost 15 years.