Coquitlam approves

$5 million upgrade to park

> New master plan for Town Centre

Colten Kamlade
Staff Reporter

 

he City of Coquitlam has

announced a plan to begin
upgrading Town Centre Park, one of
Coquitlam’s busiest green spaces.

“A new festival hub washroom;
a larger festival lawn for events,
picnicking, and informal use; forest
plantings and upgraded lake loop with
new boardwalk, improved lakefront
access with a lush and colourful
Garden Walk on the east side of the
lake; and a new public washroom
by the Evergreen Cultural Centre,”
will be added to the park, according

to the City of Coquitlam website.

Andre Isakov, park planning
and design manager for the City
of Coquitlam, said the upcoming
improvements are intended
to ensure that the park can be
used for years to come.

“The Town Centre Park Master
Plan outlined a strategy for continues
park improvement to make sure
that the park continues to serve the
community well into the future,” he
said. “The improvements will vary
in size, as always when the project
moves to construction we will work
to minimize any disturbance to park
users during the construction period.”

EN

The budget for the project is $5
million, though that isn’t necessarily
the final price tag, according to Isakov.

“That amount is a funding envelope
for all the proposed improvements,”
he said. “We will now commence
the detail design process for several
proposed improvements in the park.
Once completed, the detail design
plans for these proposed improvements
will be presented to council together
with a budget. At this point, council
authorized staff to proceed to
detail design plans and set a budget
envelope for all the improvements.”

Tackling truck traffic
in New Westminster

> Panel discusses solutions

Colten Kamlade
Staff Reporter

 

Te is frustrating anywhere, but
the high density of trucks in New
Westminster makes it a particularly
prickly debate for the city.

At Douglas College, a panel of
experts came together on March
21 to explore the problem and
propose potential solutions.

Peter Hall, professor of urban
studies at Simon Fraser University,
started his talk bluntly.

“There are some hard choices and
realities to confront ... when it comes
to transportation everyone is selfish
... we are selfish when it comes to
transportation because transportation
is not the end goal of any particular
activity ... we tailgate, we drive as fast
as we can, we refuse to pay for the
roads that we're on ... when it comes
to freight, not only are we selfish, but
were mostly ignorant,” he said.

Insofar as solutions go, both for
traffic and environmental concerns,
Hall said he was optimistic, while still
acknowledging various difficulties.

“How do we get more per load, and

part of the way we get more per load
is that we're constantly moving up a
hierarchy within the transportation
system from less polluting and less
impactful, less carbon emitting ... less
by airplane, less by small, old, dirty
diesel truck, more by clean new truck,
more by rail, more by water,” he said.

Matthew May, vice president of
BST Transportation Group, emphasized
the advances that are being made
in transportation technology.

“Technology has made trucking
safer, and I would say, if anything, we
stand to gain further advancements
in the technology space. Stability
control in trucks is a big one,
active vehicle control ... things like
electronic driver logs,” he said.

May also discussed the different
initiatives that his company had started,
such as public safety campaigns.

Peter Xotta, vice president of
planning and operations for Vancouver
Fraser Port Authority, said he had
similar concerns to the other panellists.

“The overarching question as it
relates to the consequence of trade,
the consequence of trucking on
communities and their livability is our

C C We will now commence the detail

design process,” Andre Isakov, park
planning manager City of Coquitlam

 

The Town Centre Park Master Plan
was informed by research, feedback from
public information sessions, surveys, and
consultation with sports, accessibility,
and other stakeholders, according
to the City of Coquitlam website.

“The master plan’s vision is for
a timeless park with something for
everyone—a community focal point
that respects the park’s historical
and existing feel and character,
while providing modern amenities
and capturing new and evolving
opportunities,” the website stated.

Town Centre Park opened in 1989 on

 

efforts to align our interests to address,
or at least begin to mitigate some of
those things ... how do we move stuff
and maintain livability?” he said.

Lisa Spitale, chief administrative
officer for the City of New Westminster,
said she sees an opportunity for progress.

“I think there’s enough folks starting
to agree that ‘Hey, if nothing else, status

  

Photo by Analyn Cuarto

the site of an old gravel quarry. The park
is 42 hectares, and is a popular location
for sports, recreation, and leisure
activities. The park plaza and the Percy
Perry Stadium host events that attract
thousands of spectators each year. In
2017, the park was named Canada’s
Greatest Public Space by the Canadian
Institute of Planners, according to
the City of Coquitlam website.

Work began on the updated
master plan about two years ago due
to the rising population and the new
SkyTrain station next to the park.

Photo of Peter Hall by Analyn Cuarto

quo isn’t working, point number one,’ so
what’s it really going to take for everyone
to come round the table? I don’t think
it’s an issue of ... [needing] leadership
here, I think we're all starting to say the
same thing ... we see the challenges, we
see the externalities ... we've got to find a
better way of working together,” she said.