It’s going to cost Rossland taxpayers about $30,000 to finally get the city’s skateboard park project completed.
City staff requested the money at this week’s council meeting.
“Staff requests approval to allocate up to $30,000 from general capital in 2019 (total general capital budget for 2019 is $50,000) to complete this project,” says a report to council from recreation manager Kristi Calder. “Staff will meanwhile seek other sources of funding in an attempt to reduce the amount required from the general capital fund.”
Work began on the $350,000 project in 2017, and was only expected to last a few months. While the Skateboard Association was able to bring it right up to completion, some detail work and surrounding landscaping remains.
In April, volunteers told council that while community involvement has been a success, getting that last 10 per cent of the project completed has proven too much. They asked council to take the project over.
SEE: Exhausted Rossland skateboard volunteers pass torch to city council
Calder’s report estimates it will cost about $50,000 to complete the work on the skateboard facility. There’s still about $20,000 left in the project’s kitty from other sources, forcing staff to ask council to draw from reserves for the rest.
“The park is heavily used by residents and visitors alike,” Calder notes. “Although the park and bowl itself are open and functional, the project is not complete and needs several items in order to be complete.”
Among the jobs that need to be finished:
• The addition of more obstacles in the street section of the park
• Addressing the overland flow of water which is running off and into the park from outside of park boundaries
• The addition of permanent signage for users and to recognize donors
• Completion of landscaping and integration into the surroundings
• The addition of a main entrance to the park
Council approved the additional funding to complete the park at Monday night’s meeting, with only Janice Nightingale opposed.
With approval, chief administrative officer Bryan Teasdale hopes the project can be completed by late fall.
“We have a paving program coming up, so we hope we can incorporate some of that into our paving program,” he says.
