Kelowna council reverses snap decision to withhold funding to Journey Home
After preventing Journey Home from getting federal funding to help the homeless population last week, Kelowna city council reversed its position today.
Mayor Tom Dyas pushed through a motion last week to defer the transfer of funds, saying he wanted more information on the organization’s tax status and for council to have its “priority setting” discussion first.
“Having now received this information and we have held our discussions I believe... we are in a much better place and prepared to consider the resolution,” Dyas said at the council meeting today, Dec. 5.
At stake was more than $88,000 in federal funding to aid Journey Home in its fight against homelessness. If it had not been received until next year much of it probably would've had to be returned.
The viability of the organization was also at risk, society executive director Stephanie Gautier told iNFOnews.ca last week, since scarce reserve funds had already been spent on federally mandated programs and could not be repaid by the new funding.
Dyas’ motion passed unanimously without debate today, just as it did last week.
READ MORE: Journey Home’s efforts to fight homelessness in Kelowna at risk after snap council decision
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