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Barriere House gets help from TNRD to purchase wheelchair accessible van

The Thompson Nicola Regional District (TNRD) Board has authorized $5,000 from the Federal Gas Tax Revenues Community Works Fund to support the purchase of a wheelchair accessible van for Barriere House.

The money was allocated from Electoral Area “O” (Lower Nicola Thompson) to Interior Community Services to support the purchase of a 2007 Ford E-350 XLT Club Wagon wheelchair accessible van.

Interior Community Services (ICS) operates three community living residences, one of which is Barriere House - a licensed seven bedroom home for adults with developmental disabilities.

“I was approached by ICS and they asked for financial assistance in purchasing the 10 passenger van,” said Bonnie CruzelleMyram, director for Electoral Area “O”. “The van is more energy efficient and produces fewer greenhouse gas emissions than the 1997 model it replaced.

We’ve also used the van in the past in cases of emergency, during fires, to help evacuate people who are homebound, so it has many uses in the community.”

The Federal Gas Tax Fund was initiated in 2005 and is part of the Building Canada infrastructure plan. The Fund runs until 2014 and totals $13 billion, and helps to support environmentally sustainable municipal infrastructure in such areas as public transit, drinking water, wastewater infrastructure, community energy systems, solid waste management and local roads and bridges.

So far the TNRD have completed 45 projects totalling $2.1 million.