The Squamish-Lillooet Regional District (SLRD) is looking for a cash infusion to help complete a section of the Sea to Sky Trail.
On Oct. 25, the SLRD’s board of directors voted to support the submission of a grant application for $1 million from the province’s Rural Economic Diversification and Infrastructure Program to go towards the project, which has been on the go since 2007.
According to a staff report, the funds are needed to close a 4.5-kilometre gap through the Cheakamus Canyon section of the trail, with staff explaining this segment is “more of a road project than a trail project” due to the amount of engineering solutions needed.
“It’s a lot of money, a lot more than we’ve spent on a trail section in the past,” the report said.
Work required on the segment of trail will actually cost just shy of $4 million in total, with funding also coming from the Wilson 5 Foundation (the foundation launched by Lululemon billionaire Chip Wilson, which supports land conservancy and park creation projects in B.C.) and staff endeavouring to seek other funding streams to bridge the remaining $1.9-million shortfall.
The SLRD will find out whether it is successful in securing the provincial money by spring 2024.
Beginning at the Squamish waterfront and running north for 180 kilometres through the Sea to Sky corridor to D’Arcy, the Sea to Sky Trail runs 126 kilometres and links the Pacific Ocean in the south to the Coast Mountains to the north.
Read more at slrd.bc.ca/seatoskytrail.
Lillooet landfill survey
Residents around Lillooet had two months to share their thoughts on garbage earlier this year, with the results shared with the SLRD board on Oct. 25.
Besides providing a scorecard from residents within the Lillooet Landfill and Recycling Centre Service Area, the survey found the desire for a reuse shed was high on the wishlist.
Residents also wanted the site to have additional hours, and both drywall and mattress recycling came up as issues.
The full report can be read on the SLRD website.
Community building
The SLRD is splitting some of its allocation from the federal government’s Canada Community-Building Fund between five projects across Areas C, B and A.
The board allocated up to $287,100 for community infrastructure projects, with the majority—$220,000—earmarked for upgrading water mains along Collins Road north of Pemberton.
Another $22,100 is allocated to install a new well pump and motor for the Devine water service in order to provide the community with redundancy for its water system.
Devine gets another $10,000 to go towards the cost of a long-term planning assessment for the Devine Transfer Station, while another $10,000 will do the same for the Lillooet Landfill (in Area B).
The only communications project on the docket goes to Area A, with up to $30,000 going to the Minto Communications Society in Gold Bridge to provide a temporary replacement for a tower site burned by wildfires earlier this year.
Funding allocation put off
The SLRD received a little over $1.5 million from the province’s Growing Communities Fund as part of a one-time grant splash across the province, but allocation to projects in the regional district will have to wait after board members got caught up on dividing the money between electoral areas.
Of the six projects picked by staff after analysis of needs (and availability of funds to other projects), none were specific to Area C, a point brought up by Area C director Russell Mack and backed up by Pemberton Mayor Mike Richman.
Staff countered by saying many projects on the waitlist in Area C have other funding sources available, but board members decided they wanted to hear back from staff on the same file at the next board meeting with that context baked in, and as part of a broader discussion on the SLRD budget.
The next SLRD board meeting is on Wednesday, Nov. 22.
