North Island-Powell River MLA and cabinet minister Randene Neill has indicated people on the Sunshine Coast will benefit from projects that will advance public safety, help prevent violence and promote healing.
"I can't think of a more satisfying way to spend the proceeds of crime than pouring it back into our community," stated Neill, in a media release. "Projects on the Sunshine Coast that are receiving funding through this program will help individuals and youth heal and thrive."
Two projects in the qathet region are receiving a total of $80,000 to implement crime prevention and remediation projects in their community. Local projects include qathet Community Justice Society, victim voice, victim choice, which will be receiving $40,000. The media release stated that this project will empower victims through restorative dialogue and victim surrogacy through training, evaluation, partnership development, and policy and procedure review.
The second $40,000 grant will be going to Powell River Child Youth and Family Services Society’s outdoor adventure summer camp. This project will deliver a free summer camp for youth.
The provincial government is providing $9.1 million in one-time grants through the civil forfeiture grant program, to support 166 community projects across the province. These projects are being led by local governments, community-based not-for-profits, school districts, health authorities, academic institutions, police departments and Indigenous organizations.
The release stated that $900,000 of the $9.1 million will support specialized police equipment and training, $500,000 will support the anti-hate community support fund, and $200,000 will support the response to the April 26 tragedy after the Lapu Lapu festival.
The civil forfeiture office was established in 2006 with the purpose of removing the tools and proceeds of unlawful activity and redirecting them back into programs that support community safety and crime prevention initiatives.
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