The vision of a high-tech innovation centre in Kamloops is gaining momentum in the form of a North Shore joint venture boosted by federal dollars.

MP Cathy McLeod announced funding through Western Economic Diversification amounting to $1.02 million, to be shared between the Interior Science and Innovation Council (ISIC) and a coastal counterpart, the Mid-Island Science and Technology Innovation Council.

The funding, along with $255,000 from ISIC, supports the recently opened Kamloops Innovation Centre at 368 Tranquille Rd., which provides space for new and expanding businesses. It also enables the ISIC to undertake a suite of business programs — mentoring, marketing, and website revitalization to name a few — to help entrepreneurs grow their ventures.

"ISIC is in the ideas business, working with people who have ideas and trying to turn them into products," explained executive director Bill McQuarrie. "It's called commercialization."

The partnership with the federal agency will provide local high-tech entrepreneurs with the knowledge base and support services they need to develop and market their technology, he said.

"This accelerated program is a huge step forward and will translate into an expanded tech sector, new investment and new jobs," McQuarrie said.

Both councils included, the funding should support creation of 50 to 70 jobs and 35 to 40 new startup businesses, McQuarrie said.

He said such enterprises have the capability of placing Kamloops on the map of global trade, as ambitious as that may sound.

McQuarrie recalled meeting with Peter Mutrie of the North Shore Business Improvement Association 10 years ago about the vision of a business accelerator.

"This is really exciting," said Mutrie, association manager. "This is a red-letter day."

Less than a year ago, McQuarrie met with Jae Reichel, head of Kamloops-based iTel Networks, who offered the space and co-founded the centre.

"From my point of view, this is the catalyst," Mutrie said of the funding. "This was envisioned years ago, to have a high-tech incubator. I think it's good for Kamloops and awfully good for the North Shore."

Scott Foubister, a 2010 TRU physics graduate, is one of the first entrepreneurs to take advantage of the centre. He created a computer program now used for language instruction at TRU. Now he has plans to expand its application and market it beyond.

"This accelerator is really just the thing right now," he said.

Foubister was accepted into quantum physics at University of Waterloo, but that's taken a backseat to his commercial enterprise.