Part two of Park Blitz begins

> City launching into another year of renovations

 

Colten Kamlade
Staff Reporter

 

Coan has announced that
the second phase of Park Blite—
an initiative aimed at renovating
older parks—has just begun.

In 2017, Good Neighbour Park,
Crestwood Park, Dawes Hill Park, and
Shiloh Park were upgracled as part of the
initiative. Some of the new facilities added
to these parks include new playgrounds,
pathways, picnic tables, and greenery.

The City of Coquitlam has just
begun giving Poirier Tot Lot the same
kind of makeover. Construction began

this month on Tot Lot, which will be one
of four parks renewated during the year
as stage twool the Park Blitz initiative,

According to the City of Coquitlam
website, the 2018 renovations will
be split inte two different stages,

“The 218 Park Blitz will focus on
the Poirier playground and Cape Horn
Park in the spring and Meadowbrook
aml Mariner parks in summer,” the
city website claims, “Improvements at
the three other parks alsa include new
pathways, retaining walls, upgraceel
landscaping anc irrigation, new
furnishings, and improved signage,”

The Park Blitz initiative was
being discussed all the way back in

 

2g, but construction didn't start
until az, According to the City of
Coquitlam website, the program

is meant to spruce up aspects of
some of Coquitlam’s older parks,

“The $2.5 million Park Blitz initiative
was approved in September 2016 asa
3-year plan to revitalize 12 aging parks
in Southwest Coquitlam,” the website
states, “The one-time capital program
will replace outdated components to
bring the parks to a current standarel,”

Some of the upgrades that Poirier
Tat Lot will receive include new and
improved playground equipment, rubber
play surfacing, and retaining walls, The
renovation of the Tot Lot playground

reveals Pattullo

Bridge replacement plan

> Project to cost $1.3 billion

 

Greg Waldock
Staff Writer

 

O: February 16, Premier John Horgan
announced the NDP's plans fora
replacement to the Pattullo Bridge, which
connects Surrey and New Westminster.

The project will cost roughly $1.3
billion and is slated to finish in 2023.
Plans fora replacement have been
considered for decades as the Pattullo
Bridge has aged—it was built in i937
and is considered not up te modern
safety standards, Construction is
expected to begin next summer.

The Pattullo Bridge has been the

fF

source of much concern and controversy
in recent years due to its aging structure
and the rapidly-increasing transit
demands of the Lower Mainland. It has
been due for an upgrade or replacement
for decades and will be considered unsate
for drivers within the next five years,
as it no longer meets safety standards.
According toa 2016 TransLink report,
the bridge could collapse under a small
earthquake or severe windstorm. While
proposals fora replacement have been
brought up over the years, this is the first
full official push towards a new bridge.
Funding for the new bridge will
come entirely from the provinee, and
not from TransLink as was originally

_

planned. Federal funding is alse net
yet secured. This is the largest current
obstacle to construction and planning,
and many details are still to be decided.
The design features four lanes with
room to expand, a potential dedicated
cycling lane, and a toll-free system,
similar to the Port Mann Bridge. The
lack of tolls on the Port Mann Bridge
is cited in the decision to keep the
new bridge at only four lanes, as the
Pattullo Bridge saw a decrease in use
after the NDP removed tolls last year.
Criticism for the project is centered
largely around the failure to secure federal
funding and the continued back-and-
forth arguments between the Liberals

Phot of Good Neighbour Park by Analyn Cuarta

will coincide with the renovation of
the nearby Poirier Community Centre,
The centre puts on performances,
educational programs, and a wide range
of ather activities for the community.

Park Blitz is tackling a lot of big
projects, but it's net the only program
that the city is funding te improve
recreational amenities, The recent
work on the Coquitlam Crunch, which
will cost approximately $7 million,
and the renovation of Rochester Park
hack in 2017, which cost around $4
million, are just afew of the large
endeavours that the City of Coquitlam
has undertaken in recent years,

Phote via Surrey.ca

and NDP regarding the Massey Tunnel.
BC Liberal leader Andrew Wilkinson
weighed in after Horgan's announcement,
saying that the province “rushed into this
alone, and missed out on almost a half
billion in federal infrastructure funding,”
referencing the fact that the project will
not wait for federal financing approval due
to the unsafe nature of the current bridge.
With its planned four-year
construction and $1.3 billion cost, this
project is one of the largest undertakings
by the new NDP government and will
be core to the future of trasportation
in the Lower Mainland.