The City of Castlegar has decided to delay the opening of the swimming ponds at Millennium Park, due to flooding.
City operations manager Michael Gagnier said water levels in the park’s third pond rose considerably after BC Hydro increased its discharge rates at the Keenleyside Dam late last month.
“We were hoping to open up the ponds, but now that the water levels are up we’re going to open our splash parks instead. That’s primarily due to safety concerns,” said Gagnier.
“If children were to use the ponds now, they would easily be able to enter the river.”
Once water levels recede, Gagnier said crews will have to remove algae from at least one of the ponds before they can open.
The flooding caused minor damage to a goose mitigation fence and a portion of shoreline along the park.
The Keeper, an iconic statue that won the People’s Choice Award in the Castlegar Sculpturewalk in 2018, was also underwater due to the flooding.
While a 50-meter section of path through the park was also closed, water levels have receded slightly and it has since reopened to the public.
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