Coldstream Sovereign House Repairs Approved

Coldstream Council has approved Committee of the Whole recommendations to begin improvements to the caretaker house in Sovereign Park.

Money will be spent on an asbestos review and putting in a perimeter drain.

There’s been some thought that isn’t needed, but Mayor Jim Garlick says the natural gravity flow has created too many issues.

“Not putting any pipes in around it or drainage rock to have it flow away from the house. Over the years, that’s been adding up and causing problems with the building.”

That will cost about 15 thousand dollars.

Garlick says the house is too important to tear down.

“It served us well as a place for a caretakers residence. Some people have brought up the idea of a museum or exhibit hall in the building. We want to keep a caretaker in there.”

He admits it fell between the cracks when it was part of the regional parks system.

“We had so many parks within that regional park organization. Attention to detail wasn’t necessarily paid to a lot of things. So that’s one of the arguments why we wanted to do the restructuring.”

Repairs to the house are estimated to be about 100 thousand dollars.