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LOCAL NEWS – LOCAL MATTERS
THURSDAY JUNE 14, 2018
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City rules out Fenton site Theresa McManus
tmcmanus@newwestrecord.ca
A Fenton Street site is off the table for a proposed modular housing project for homeless women. Working in partnership with BC Housing, the City of New Westminster has proposed to build a 44-unit modular housing project for women who are homeless or at risk of homelessness at 838 Ewen Ave. After receiving a petition signed by more than 2,000 people who are concerned about building the project next to the community centre and two schools, council directed staff to take another look at a site at 200 Fenton St. in Queensborough. John Stark, the city’s acting director of planning, said the Fenton site has a number of positive attributes, including its large size, but it also has a number of site-preparation constraints that prevent it from being suitable for the modular housing project. “The funding source for the modular housing is under the rapid response to homelessness initiative,” he said. Continued on page 6
‘I CAN DO IT’: Climbing obstacles was the challenge faced by people taking part in races Sunday at the annual Sapperton Day in New Westminster. The event drew huge crowds as families flocked to the longstanding city tradition. PHOTO JENNIFER GAUTHIER
New West will now pursue two pool designs Theresa McManus
tmcmanus@newwestrecord.ca
An aquatics centre with all the bells and whistles needed to host competitions could cost up to $15 million more than a community pool – but the city is willing to take the plunge if the feds will kick in some cash. On Monday, council approved staff recommendations concerning “two streams” to take regarding the future aquatics and community centre. Staff recommended the city pursue two design options – a community recreation facility and an en-
hanced competition-hosting capacity. Council directed staff to prepare a federal grant submission for the enhanced competition-hosting facility option. Mayor Jonathan Cote said the recommendation from the Mayor’s Task Force on the Canada Games Pool and Centennial Community Centre responds to a desire that’s been expressed for a facility that can host competitions but also acknowledges that a city of 70,000 people, with a limited tax base, would have trouble funding it on its own.
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“I am very optimistic that the history of the Canada Games Pool, its history of competition, will make this a very strong sell in terms of being able to obtain a grant,” he said. “I think that being able to attach the competitive swim component to the grant applications will actually improve our chances.” A staff report states that preliminary cost estimates suggest a community recreation facility would cost $100 million and an enhanced competition-hosting facility would cost $115 million. The community rec-
reation facility would be about 114,300 square feet in size and include a leisure aquatics tank, an eightlane aquatics program tank, change rooms and support spaces, an enhanced fitness centre, a welcome centre, multipurpose rooms, a childcare facility and gymnasiums, including spaces that could potentially accommodate gymnastics and trampoline programs once offered at the Arenex. In order for the facility to host large swim meets, including regional and western competitions, it would need two additional lanes (10 in total), additional deck space,
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additional spectator seating and additional warmup/cool down area. Geoff Watson, a principal with Turnbull Construction Project Managers Inc., said the approach being taken will allow the city to proceed with schematic designs, to a point where potential funding from federal or provincial governments is better understood. Steve Kellock, the city’s senior manager of recreation services and facilities, said the city will use the fact that the facility will be a regional draw as a way of garnering additional support for a grant application
to the federal government. City staff has met with Hyack Swim Club to see how they can work collaboratively to pursue the grant, and will also be seeking Swimming Canada’s support for the project. In addition to preparing grant applications for federal and provincial infrastructure funding, the city will issue a request for proposals for a design team to develop detailed designs, conduct a parking analysis for both facility options and begin technical studies that will help provide more clarity about the project scope and cost.
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