Sea to Sky corridor residents impacted by the economic downturn now have help closer to home with the official opening of a new Service Canada office in Squamish on Nov. 2.

West Vancouver-Sunshine Coast-Sea to Sky MP John Weston was on hand for a ribbon cutting ceremony Monday (Nov. 9).

He said the agency’s help with the bureaucracy of federal programs and services – such as employment insurance claims, Canada pension plans, old age security and the federal job bank – is especially crucial in the wake of job losses and financial hardships.

“With this new Service Canada Centre, residents of Squamish and surrounding neighbourhoods have access to personalized assistance about important programs and services,” Weston said. “The centre is also ideally located to support clients in Whistler during the 2010 Winter Games.”

In addition to the increased access to services for the residents of Squamish and the Sea to Sky corridor, the new location will provide enhanced federal visibility in the community, stated a federal government news release.

The office’s four employees may be the most pleased with the establishment of the new office since every one is a Squamish residents who has been commuting to their Service Canada jobs in North Vancouver for between six and 33 years.

However, since each employee is also fully trained to work in a passport intake office, locals have already been lodging complaints that the office does not offer a passport service.

Heather Backhouse, director of Service Canada’s Vancouver management area, said the service may be “something to look forward to.”

“We have an agreement with our other passport colleagues that identifies the sites and timeframes that we work on that (passport office) expansion,” said Backhouse. “Because this is a new location, it hadn’t been part of those early discussions.

“We’ll certainly be taking the interest that’s been expressed by the community for the passport service offering to those (future) discussions. It will be something to look forward to, to be able to add other services to what we currently offer when that day comes along.”

Weston said the focus of the new Service Canada office and the emphasis in government is to improve services that will help Canadians respond to the economic downturn.

“And who knows?” he added. “Maybe we’ll work on improving passport services as well.”

Service Canada assistance is also available online at www.canada.gc.ca and by telephone at 1-800-O-Canada.