Crossing Place Housing Society, a non-profit operated by the Kanaka Bar Indian Band, will receive a federal grant of $471,000 for a multi-purpose building, announced Mission-Matsqui-Fraser Canyon MP Brad Vis on June 1.

Vis said he’s working to get rural communities federal infrastructure investments, especially after the devastating wildfires and floods of 2021.

He congratulated Kanaka Bar Chief Patrick Michell, adding the grant is a step in the right direction and he’s looking to secure further funding for similar projects.

The multi-purpose building will serve as a community hub, Vis said.

“I am thrilled to see residents and neighbours, many still displaced, will have a centre to refresh and connect with one another,” Vis said.

The Kanaka Bar is just south of Lytton, which was 90 per cent destroyed by wildfire during the heat-dome last summer. An estimated 1,200 residents were displaced.

The plan for the multi-purpose building was proposed within a week of the disaster. Chief Michell, whose own home was lost to the fire, said the plan was about what they can do to help others.

A large community recovery centre would provide a temporary service hub for the region, with meeting space, a kitchen, dining space, and multi-purpose rooms that could be used for a daycare, said John Kenney of Urban Systems last year while outlining the plan.

Two more multipurpose buildings could be customized to meet needs that are specific to the Lytton fire recovery effort, including essential services such as first aid and RCMP, and options such as a small store and fuel services.

– with files from Barbara Roden

READ MORE: Bold plan to house Lytton wildfire evacuees proposed by Kanaka Bar band