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BARKERVILLE – Communities and businesses in northern British Columbia will benefit from $2 million in provincial government funding to Barkerville, said John Wilson, MLA for Cariboo North. Wilson made the announcement during the annual Dominion Day celebrations at the historic Gold Rush town today.
The provincial funding will assist with the restoration and preservation of Barkerville’s buildings and artifacts. Members of the Barkerville Task Force, including representatives from local city councils, business people and the Friends of Barkerville, said in their report released in May that the provincial funding was necessary to successfully shift day-to-day operations of the heritage site into local hands.
“Barkerville is the cornerstone of the Cariboo region’s tourism industry,” said Wilson. “This funding will bring us one step closer to local community management of the site, which will give the operators more flexibility to promote Barkerville and help to set it on a sustainable footing for many years to come. The Barkerville Task Force members told us what they needed to make this possible, and we have acted.”
Once a local governance board is created, the province will allocate the $2 million over three years. The province will provide $1 million in the first year and $500,000 in each of the next two years. This grant is in addition to annual provincial funding of $750,000.
The Barkerville Task Force, created in December 2003 to devise a long-term strategy for management of the site, has proposed the creation of a new board of governance for Barkerville. The 13 directors would be appointed by various nominators from the aera, including Tourism British Columbia, Cariboo Chilcotin Coast Tourism Association, Friends of Barkerville, B.C. Museums Association, Heritage Society of BC, School District 28, University of Northern British Columbia and central interior municipalities and regional districts.
“The task force did an excellent job,” said Pat Pickering, president of the Friends of Barkerville and a member of the task force. “I am pleased that the provincial government has provided the $2 million in funding recommended by task force members.”
Twelve heritage sites in B.C., including Fort Steele, have undergone a shift in management to local community operators over the last two years. Barkerville is the last site waiting to make the transition to community management.
“Local community operators at the other sites are proving to be creative and innovative in their marketing of sites and more responsive to the needs of local communities,” said Wilson. “I am confident Barkerville will enjoy the same success under a local governance model.”
Barkerville is open daily between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. Full services operate from mid-June to September 30. For more information, contact the office at 250-994-3332 or e-mail barkerville@gems8.gov.bc.ca. More information can be found on the ministry’s website at http://www.mcaws.gov.bc.ca/heritage_branch/barkerville.htm online.
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