WINNIPEG – The Government of Canada has announced it will invest in the Wehwehneh Bahgahkinahgohn project at the site of the former Hudson’s Bay Company building in Winnipeg’s downtown core.
Federal Minister for PrairiesCan Dan Vandal said the government will invest more than $31 million in the project.
Infrastructure Canada is investing $25 million through the Green and Inclusive Community Buildings program and PrairiesCan is investing $6 million through the Community Economic Development and Diversification program, a PrairiesCan release said.
The investment will support the Southern Chiefs’ Organization’s (SCO) Wehwehneh Bahgahkinahgohn project as a downtown economic, housing and cultural hub.
“The creation of Wehwehneh Bahgahkinahgohn in Winnipeg will revitalize our downtown and move us from promises to action. Congratulations to the Southern Chiefs’ Organization on this project that will stand as an example of reconciliation in action to the entire country. I am pleased that our collaboration will make a positive generational impact,” Vandal said.
“The reimagined HBC building will bring economic reconciliation to the forefront. This project has already inspired new partnerships and hope for the future. As we recover from the intergenerational and ongoing impacts of colonization, it is essential to see investments and strong partnerships that contribute to the healing and wellness of the first peoples of this country we all call home,” SCO Grand Chief Jerry Daniels added.
SCO is a First Nations organization representing 34 Anishinaabe and Dakota Nations and more than 87,000 people that works to promote the rights, cultures and prosperity of its member nations.
The plan for the Wehwehneh Bahgahkinahgohn project includes affordable housing units, assisted living units for Elders, a child care centre, a museum and gallery, entrepreneurial space, two restaurants, and public spaces that “honour the land and commemorate residential and day-school survivors and the children who did not return home,” the release said.
PrairiesCan investment for this project includes the development and launch of Miikahnah Connect, a First Nations-focused workforce development app, as well as activities to prepare the former HBC building for redevelopment. Infrastructure Canada funding will support repairs and upgrades to the building including transforming the main floor into a public space.
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