Carrier Sekani Family Services (CSFS) has finally received a green light to go ahead with its healing and treatment centre facility on Tachick Lake.
In July 2020, CSFS had offered to buy a remote fishing resort on Tachick Lake near Vanderhoof, to achieve its goal of creating a lakeside healing and treatment facility. However, their goal was met with obstacles after the government’s farmland regulations blocked the proposal.
After public engagement sessions and dialogue with the Agricultural land Commission (ALC) and the Province of BC, CSFS received a final “Reasons for Decision” from the ALC regarding their request for an exemption from the Agricultural Land Reserve (ALR) for the construction of a Healing/Treatment Centre Facility on Tachick Lake, located within traditional Saik’uz territory. The ALC has made the decision to allow CSFS to use the Tachick Lake site for non-farm use.
Cheslatta Carrier Nation elected chief Corrina Leween and president of CSFS, who has been a staunch supporter of this project, expressed her excitement and relief over the decision.
“We are very happy with the ALC Decision to allow ‘non-farm use’ of the property for operations of the Carrier Sekani Family Services Addiction Recovery Program in the new facility, and will continue to serve future generations,” she said.
“The ALC decision allows Carrier Sekani Family Services to move forward in realizing our long-term goals that include healing and treatment that will help address the ongoing opioid and metal health crises that are disproportionately affecting Indigenous people.”
The proposed facility is a year-round residential treatment centre that will provide mental health and addiction recovery services. The facility is proposed to house up to 60 clients. The plan is to use the existing lodge and construct a 25,000 square foot main facility which will include meeting areas, counselling rooms, offices, kitchen, dining room and accommodations for residents and staff.
While the ALC decision on exclusion approval will be subject to some conditions, including parameters around boundary set-backs, construction guidelines, timelines and requisite communications regarding design and construction, CSFS is confident that these are achievable.
Next steps for this project will include fundraising for the remaining funds needed to begin construction of the facility and then moving to the design phase of the construction process.
Leween emphasized on how important this facility would prove to be considering the overdose rates and rising addictions in the province. She said that this project needs to be ready “as early as yesterday” highlighting the urgency.
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